VOA慢速：在家工作限制了工作友谊
Work from Home Limits Work Friendships
刘立军 供稿
u TRANSCRIPT
And now the Health & Lifestyle report from VOA Learning English.
Working from home has its benefits, but it also has its problems. One of them involves workplace friendships. Working remotely, or away from an office, may make it harder to form friendships with coworkers.
In the United States, only 2 in every 10 employees say they have a "best friend" at work. That information comes from a Gallup opinion study done in June 2022.
Jim Harter is a workplace and well-being researcher for Gallup. He said, "We are seeing in the data that younger people in general are feeling more disconnected from their workplaces."
Harter added that if young people are "less connected to their workplace," they have fewer chances to connect with their co-workers. It may be difficult to "develop those kinds of friendships that they might have had in the past."
Also, he said there is a difference in levels of trust among work friends. "It is a lot more difficult to establish close kinds of relationships when you are more distant," he said.
Take for example, Crystal Powers. She is a medical records manager in the state of Wisconsin. Powers began a new remote job in February 2022.
Powers is the only manager hired since the pandemic who oversees full-time remote workers. Team building has been difficult, she said. She has not yet met in person two of the five people she oversees.
She said, "It has been more challenging than it has been in past positions to earn the trust in me as a supervisor, because they still do not really know me."
She also has found it hard to connect with other managers online. Still, Powers said, she likes working remotely.
Harter, from Gallup, said that having a best friend at work has become even more important since the rise in remote and hybrid employment.
For many employees during the pandemic, workplace friendships offered social and emotional support at a critical time, Gallup found from their recent study. This is especially true of parents, educators and frontline workers.
These workplace friendships also benefited employers. Gallup research shows that employees who have a close friend at work are much more likely to: interact with customers and work partners, get more done in less time, support a safe workplace with fewer accidents, and create and share ideas.
Johnny C. Taylor Jr. is president and chief of the Society for Human Resource Management. He said many good things come from work friendships.
First on his list is worker retention - a company's ability to keep good workers. Next on his list is peace in the workplace. He said work friends can help to keep each other calm when disagreements happen.
More companies, he said, are actively supporting workplace friendships. His organization has nearly 500 employees around the world. One of its programs centers around something that often brings people together - food. The organization buys lunch for people who invite a new person to share a meal with them.
Taylor said, "we're trying to get people together who have different lived experiences, backgrounds, et cetera. The idea is, you go to lunch with a stranger and make them a friend."
Henry Crabtree is 26 years old and lives in London. He said that when you have close work friends, "You're not only working with each other but for each other."
He was hired in December 2021 onto a small marketing team for a software company. That company has workers around the world.
"Seeing each other outside work, especially when colleagues are from other countries," he said, really helps develop these friendships.
And that's the Health & Lifestyle report.
I'm Anna Matteo.
u VOCABULARY
1. workplace n. the office, factory, etc. where people work 工作场所。例如：the introduction of new technology into the workplace 把新技术引进工厂
2. supervisor n. a person who supervises sb./sth. 指导者；主管人。例如：I have a meeting with my supervisor about my research topic. 我要就我的研究课题同导师见一次面。
3. frontline n. 前线
4. retention n. the action of keeping sth. rather than losing it or stopping it 保持；维持；保留。例如：The company needs to improve its training and retention of staff. 公司需要改进对员工的培训和留用工作。
uQUESTIONS
Listen to the news and choose the best answer to each question you hear.
1. What is one of the problems of working from home mentioned in the news report?
A) It may lead to overworking.
B) It can cause physical health problems.
C) It can make it difficult to form workplace friendships.
D) It may decrease work productivity.
2. According to the news report, what did the Gallup study find besides the fact that only 2 in 10 American employees have a “best friend” at work?
A) Remote working improves work-life balance.
B) Employee satisfaction is not affected by workplace friendships.
C) Workplace friendships can improve employee engagement.
D) Working remotely can decrease work productivity.
3. According to Harter, what is the consequence of young people being less connected to their workplace?
A) They have fewer chances to connect with their friends.
B) They are more likely to be unproductive.
C) They miss out on valuable work experience.
D) They have fewer chances to connect with their co-workers.
4. What is the main challenge that Crystal Powers, a medical records manager in Wisconsin, faces in her new remote job?
A) A lack of trust from her team members.
B) Difficulty in managing her team’s workload.
C) Struggling to meet official deadlines.
D) Difficulty in connecting with other managers online.
5. What kind of program does Johnny C. Taylor Jr.'s organization have to encourage workplace friendships?
A) A mentoring program for new employees.
B) A team-building program involving food.
C) A program that provides financial assistance for employee lunches.
D) A program that pairs employees with similar backgrounds.
u KEY
1. What is one of the problems of working from home mentioned in the news report?
A) It may lead to overworking.
B) It can cause physical health problems.
C) It can make it difficult to form workplace friendships.
D) It may decrease work productivity.
【答案】C
【解析】细节题。命题出处：Working from home has its benefits, but it also has its problems. One of them involves workplace friendships. Working remotely, or away from an office, may make it harder to form friendships with coworkers. 新闻报告中提到远程工作的一个问题是很难与同事建立友谊。
2. According to the news report, what did the Gallup study find besides the fact that only 2 in 10 American employees have a “best friend” at work?
A) Remote working improves work-life balance.
B) Workplace friendships can improve employee engagement.
C) Employee satisfaction is not affected by workplace friendships.
D) Working remotely can decrease work productivity.
【答案】B
【解析】 推理题。命题出处：These workplace friendships also benefited employers. Gallup research shows that employees who have a close friend at work are much more likely to interact with customers and work partners, get more done in less time, support a safe workplace with fewer accidents, and create and share ideas. 根据新闻报道，盖洛普的这项研究发现职场友谊可以提高员工的参与度。
3. According to Harter, what is the consequence of young people being less connected to their workplace?
A) They have fewer chances to connect with their friends.
B) They are more likely to be unproductive.
C) They miss out on valuable work experience.
D) They have fewer chances to connect with their co-workers.
【答案】D
【解析】细节题。命题出处：Jim Harter is a workplace and well-being researcher for Gallup. He said, "We are seeing in the data that younger people in general are feeling more disconnected from their workplaces." Harter added that if young people are "less connected to their workplace," they have fewer chances to connect with their co-workers. 根据哈特的说法，如果年轻人和他们的工作场所“联系较少”，则他们与同事联系的机会也较少。他们可能很难“建立他们过去可能拥有的那种友谊关系。”
4. What is the main challenge that Crystal Powers, a medical records manager in Wisconsin, faces in her new remote job?
A) A lack of trust from her team members.
B) Difficulty in managing her team’s workload.
C) Struggling to meet official deadlines.
D) Difficulty in connecting with other managers online.
【答案】A
【解析】细节题。命题出处：Take for example, Crystal Powers. She is a medical records manager in the state of Wisconsin. Powers began a new remote job in February 2022. Powers is the only manager hired since the pandemic who oversees full-time remote workers. Team building has been difficult, she said. She has not yet met in person two of the five people she oversees. She said, "It has been more challenging than it has been in past positions to earn the trust in me as a supervisor, because they still do not really know me." 新闻报道中提到，Crystal Powers 是威斯康星州的一位医疗记录管理员，自2022年2月开始了新的远程工作。由于团队建设很难，她说遇到了很多挑战，指出作为疫情期间唯一负责全职远程工作者的管理人员，她的团队成员中有两个她都还没有见过面，这样就很难赢得他们对她作为主管的信任，这是她所面临的主要挑战。
5. What kind of program does Johnny C. Taylor Jr.'s organization have to encourage workplace friendships?
A) A mentoring program for new employees.
B) A team-building program involving food.
C) A program that provides financial assistance for employee lunches.
D) A program that pairs employees with similar backgrounds.
【答案】B
【解析】细节题。命题出处：More companies, he said, are actively supporting workplace friendships. His organization has nearly 500 employees around the world. One of its programs centers around something that often brings people together - food. The organization buys lunch for people who invite a new person to share a meal with them. 新闻报道提到，Johnny C. Taylor Jr. 的组织拥有近500名员工，其中一个项目以常常让人们聚在一起进食。该组织为邀请新人一起用餐的人买午餐。因此，正确答案为B。
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