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IELTS Work Vocabulary

On this page you will find work vocabulary. These words will help you write, read and speak about the topic in the test.

A mix of common word forms with example sentences is provided, but make sure you do your own research on the words and practice using them.

You will find:

The word The definition
An example sentence

At the bottom of the page you will find links to essays connected to work topics so you can see more work vocabulary in context. 

vocabulary-work

Work Vocabulary

 

Employee

 

Someone who is paid to work for someone else.

 

 

The company has several hundred employees.

 

Employer


A person or organization that employs people.

 


Employers monitor their employees very carefully these days.


Employment

 

When someone is paid to work for a company or organization.



Due to the recession, there are thousands of people looking for employment.

I was employed in the company for several years.


Unemployment

 

Not working.



Levels of unemployment in the economy have been rapidly increasing.

He has been unemployed for 6 months now.


Commute


To make the same journey regularly between work and home



It is taking longer for people to commute to work because of traffic problems.

Commuting to work everyday by bus is tiring.


Occupation


Formal way to say 'job'.



What is your occupation?


Career


Working life or a particular job during one's working life that gets better in terms of salary and position.



He is retired now but he had an amazing career ( = succesful working life).

He hopes to have a career in the army

 

Profession


Any type of work which needs special training or a particular skill, often one which is respected because it involves a high level of education.



The teaching profession is not as good as it used to be because salaries have decreased.


Salary / Wages


Money paid each month to an employee for their work.



Public sector salaries are not keeping up with inflation.

He receives a good wage because he works for a prestigious company.


Public Sector


Businesses and industries that are owned or controlled by the government.



You get a good pension if you work for the public sector, but the salary is not always so good.


Private Sector


Businesses and industries that are privately owned.



Most graduates hope to work in the private sector when they finish university as there are more opportunities and the pay is better than the public sector.


Retire


To stop working because of old age or ill health.



The retirement age in most countries is 65.

He had to retire early due to ill health.


Flexitime


Working a fixed number of hours but having flexibility with start and finish times.



They have introduced flexitime at my work place so I usually start at 10am now and finish at 6pm.


Resign / Quit


To leave a job.



He resigned from his job yesterday.

Don't quit your job unless you have another one to start.


Fire / Sack /

Dismiss


To remove someone from their job, especially because they have done something wrong



He was fired / sacked / dismissed because he was late for work every day.


Vacancy


A job position that is not filled and so is available.



I spoke to the company and they said they had several vacancies.


Overtime


Working more than your contracted hours.



The employees often work overtime but they are not given extra money so it is not fair.


Shift


The time worked in a job that is not normal hours.



She is a nurse so she has to work in shifts. One week she does the morning shift, and then the next week she will do the night shift.

Shift work can be very tiring.



View model essays that include work vocabulary:

Employing Older People Essay

Competing for Jobs Essay

More Topic Related Vocabulary:


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