Work & Career vocabulary for IELTS
Employment, workplaces, skills and the future of jobs. 20 words with definitions and example sentences, useful for Writing Task 2 and Speaking Part 3.
- remote working noun
- working from outside a traditional office
- Remote working has improved work-life balance for many.
- job satisfaction noun
- how content a person is with their job
- Flexible hours can greatly increase job satisfaction.
- work-life balance noun
- the division of time between work and personal life
- A four-day week could improve work-life balance.
- unemployment rate noun
- the percentage of people without work who want it
- The unemployment rate fell to 4% last year.
- gig economy noun
- a labour market of short-term, freelance jobs
- The gig economy offers flexibility but little security.
- job security noun
- confidence that you will keep your job
- Temporary contracts offer little job security.
- productivity noun
- the rate at which work is produced
- Shorter meetings can boost productivity.
- career prospects noun
- chances of success in a career
- A second language improves career prospects.
- entrepreneur noun
- a person who starts a business
- Young entrepreneurs often struggle to obtain loans.
- skilled labour noun
- workers with specialist training
- There is a shortage of skilled labour in construction.
- wage gap noun
- a difference in pay between groups
- The gender wage gap persists in many professions.
- promotion noun
- a move to a higher position
- She earned a promotion after two years.
- redundancy noun
- losing your job because it is no longer needed
- Automation has led to large-scale redundancies.
- motivation noun
- the reason or enthusiasm for doing something
- Recognition is a powerful source of motivation.
- flexible hours noun
- a schedule workers can partly choose
- Flexible hours help parents manage childcare.
- retirement age noun
- the age at which people stop working
- Many governments are raising the retirement age.
- transferable skills noun
- abilities useful in many different jobs
- Communication is one of the most transferable skills.
- workforce noun
- all the people who work in a company or country
- Women now make up nearly half of the workforce.
- burn the midnight oil idiom
- to work late into the night
- I burned the midnight oil before my final exams. (Speaking only)
- fulfilling adjective
- making you feel satisfied and useful
- Teaching can be a deeply fulfilling career.