englishnewseasy.com
US Employers Increasingly Choose ‘Disposable’ Workers
美国雇主日益偏好“一次性”员工
Watch on YouTube 📺
US Employers Increasingly Choose ‘Disposable’ Workers
美国雇主日益偏好“一次性”员工
美国的一项最新研究显示，美国雇主将全美超过三分之一、近5700万名的员工视为可有可无的“消耗品”。为了节省成本并避免支付福利，企业大力引入外包承包商、自由职业者以及兼职员工。这种转变虽然为企业节省了大笔开支，却让数以百万计的劳动者陷入低薪与生活不稳定的困境。
A new labor study shows that
一项最新的劳工研究结果显示：labor study 劳工研究
US employers treat over one in three workers as disposable.
美国雇主将超过三分之一的员工视为可随时替换的“一次性”劳动力。treat A as B 将A视为B / disposable 可随时抛弃的
That comes to nearly 57 million people across the country.
全美共有近5700万人处于这种状态。comes to 达到 / across the country 全美
The researcher found three main types of disposable workers.
研究人员发现，这类“一次性”员工主要分为三种类型。main types 主要类型 / disposable workers 容易被解雇的员工
First, contractors like office cleaners make up 13% of the workforce.
第一，像办公室清洁工这样的外包承包商占总劳动力的13%。contractors 外包承包商 / make up 占 / workforce 总劳动力
Second, organizational freelancers like app drivers account for 5%.
第二，像网约车司机这样的平台自由职业者占5%。freelancers 自由职业者 / account for 占……
Third, marginal workers make up 17% of all workers.
第三，边缘型员工占全体员工的17%。marginal workers 边缘型员工 / make up 占
These marginal workers have standard jobs,
这些边缘型员工虽然拥有常规岗位，standard jobs 标准常规岗位
but they lack job security and promotion paths.
但缺乏职业安定性和晋升途径。lack 缺乏 / job security 职业安定性 / promotion paths 晋升途径
For example, staff attorneys do grunt work without any chance of promotion.
例如，专职律师在没有任何晋升机会的情况下做着枯燥的杂务。staff attorneys 专职律师 / grunt work 枯燥单调的杂务 / chance of promotion 晋升机会
Also, adjunct professors held 68% of college teaching jobs in 2021,
此外，2021年大学兼职教师承担了68%的教学岗位，adjunct professors 大学兼职教师 / teaching jobs 教学岗位
compared to just 27% in 1970.
而1970年这一比例仅为27%。compared to 与……相比
Part-time marginal workers are another huge group used to save money.
用于节省成本的兼职边缘型员工是另一个庞大的群体。marginal workers 边缘型员工 / save money 节省成本
On average, part-time jobs pay nearly 20% less per hour than full-time jobs.
平均而言，兼职岗位的时薪比全职岗位少近20%。On average 平均 / pay per hour 每小时薪资 / full-time jobs 全职岗位
Managers like this high turnover,
管理人员喜欢这种高离职率，high turnover 高离职率/人员流动率
because it lets them adjust staff quickly without paying extra benefits.
因为这能让他们快速调整人员，而无需支付额外的福利。adjust staff 快速调整人员 / extra benefits 额外福利
In fact, after healthcare laws required coverage for 30-hour workweeks,
事实上，在医疗保健法律要求为每周工作30小时的员工提供保障后，healthcare laws 医疗保健法律 / required coverage 强制保障 / 30-hour workweeks 每周30小时工作制
low-wage companies added 500,000 part-time jobs just to avoid those costs.
低薪企业仅仅为了规避这些成本，就新增了50万个兼职岗位。low-wage companies 低薪企业 / avoid costs 规避成本
This shift saves businesses big money,
这种转变虽然为企业节省了大笔资金，This shift 这种转变 / saves big money 节省大笔开支
but it leaves millions of workers with lower pay and unstable lives.
却给数以百万计的劳动者留下了更低的薪资和不稳定的生活。leaves A with B 给A留下B / lower pay 更低的薪资 / unstable lives 不稳定的生活
Quiz 🧠
Q1. In the US, do companies often hire part-time workers to save on benefits?
查看答案
✅ Yes
兼职员工通常无法享受医疗保险等昂贵的福利待遇，企业因此能够节省开支。
Part-time workers often do not receive expensive benefits like healthcare, which saves companies money.
Q2. What does "disposable" mean in "disposable workers"?
查看答案
✅ easy to replace
“disposable”表示容易被丢弃或取代。
"Disposable" describes something or someone that can be easily thrown away or replaced.
Q3. When US laws require healthcare for 30-hour workweeks, why do some companies cut worker hours?
查看答案
✅ To avoid healthcare costs
将工作时长控制在法定标准以下，企业就可以免于承担强制性的员工医保费用。
Keeping hours under the legal limit lets businesses avoid paying for mandatory employee healthcare.
Dialogue 🎧
Liam: Did you read that new labor study? US employers treat fifty-seven million people as disposable!
Liam: 你看到那篇最新的劳工研究了吗？美国雇主竟然把5700万人当成用完即扔的“一次性”员工！
Charlotte: Wait, fifty-seven million? That comes to over one in three workers across the country!
Charlotte: 等等，5700万人？那相当于全美每三个员工里就有一个以上啊！
Liam: That is wild! Is that mostly app drivers and freelancers?
Liam: 这也太夸张了！这主要是网约车司机和自由职业者吗？
Charlotte: Actually, no. Organizational freelancers make up only five percent. The researcher found three main types.
Charlotte: 其实不是。组织型自由职业者只占5%。研究人员发现了三种主要类型。
Liam: Really? So who else counts as disposable?
Liam: 真的吗？那还有谁算作“一次性”员工？
Charlotte: Contractors like office cleaners make up thirteen percent. Then there are marginal workers.
Charlotte: 像办公室清洁工这样的外包承包商占了13%。然后还有边缘型员工。
Liam: Marginal workers? What does that even mean?
Liam: 边缘型员工？这到底是什么意思？
Charlotte: They have standard jobs, but lack job security and promotion paths. They account for seventeen percent.
Charlotte: 他们有常规的工作，但缺乏职业安定性和晋升途径。他们占了17%。
Liam: So like staff attorneys doing grunt work with no promotion?
Liam: 所以就像是没有晋升机会、只能做单调杂务的专职律师？
Charlotte: Yes, exactly! Adjunct professors are another big example. They held sixty-eight percent of college teaching jobs in 2021.
Charlotte: 对，一点也没错！兼职教授是另一个典型的例子。2021年他们占了大学教学岗位的68%。
Liam: That is a huge jump. Back in 1970, that was only twenty-seven percent.
Liam: 这增幅太大了。在1970年的时候，这个比例才27%呢。
Charlotte: Right, it really shifted. Part-time marginal workers are another huge group used to save money.
Charlotte: 是的，变化确实很大。用来节省成本的兼职边缘型员工是另一个庞大的群体。
Liam: How much money do businesses actually save?
Liam: 企业到底能节省多少钱？
Charlotte: Part-time jobs pay nearly twenty percent less per hour than full-time jobs.
Charlotte: 兼职岗位的时薪比全职岗位低了将近20%。
Liam: Oof. And managers love that high turnover, right?
Liam: 唉。而且管理人员很喜欢这种高流动率，对吧？
Charlotte: Yes, because high turnover lets them adjust staff quickly. They avoid paying extra benefits.
Charlotte: 是的，因为高流动率能让他们快速调整人员，还能避免支付额外的福利。
Liam: Like health insurance coverage?
Liam: 比如医疗保险保障？
Charlotte: Exactly. After healthcare laws required coverage for thirty-hour workweeks, low-wage companies added five hundred thousand part-time jobs.
Charlotte: 没错。在医疗保健法律要求为每周工作30小时的员工提供保障后，低薪企业就增加了50万个兼职岗位。
Liam: They added half a million jobs just to avoid those costs? That is unbelievable.
Liam: 他们仅仅为了规避这些成本就增加了50万个兼职岗位？真是令人不敢相信。
Charlotte: This shift saves businesses big money. However, it leaves millions of workers with lower pay and unstable lives.
Charlotte: 这种转变帮企业节省了大笔资金。然而，它却给数以百万计的劳动者留下了更低的薪资和不稳定的生活。
Liam: It really makes me look at everyday jobs differently. That whole system feels so broken.
Liam: 这真让我对日常工作有了不同的看法。感觉整个体系都太有问题了。