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BUSINESS ENGLISH · BUSINESS ISSUES · INTERMEDIATE (B1-B2)

WORKING
TOGETHER
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1 Warm-up

What is a co-operative?

2 Key words

Match the following words with their correct definitions:

1. a warehouse a. additional time at work

2. a perk b. a fixed regular payment that a worker receives

3. wage c. a large building in which goods are stored

4. the bottom line d. an extra thing that you have in your work, e.g. a laptop or a car

5. staff e. effort and motivation to achieve a goal

6. overtime f. employees

7. drive (noun) g. the most important thing to consider, usually the company’s net profit

3 Reading

You are going to read an article about a British co-operative. Read the statements below and put ‘T’
(True) or ‘F’ (False) next to each statement. Then read the text to check your answers.

1. The co-operative hire a catering company to 4. Staff work fixed hours.

prepare lunch. 5. Managers control the business.
2. Everybody receives the same salary. 6. Staff receive a low wage.
3. Profit is the bottom line. 7. Staff work very hard.

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Workers’ co-operatives
One for all, all for one.

1.
It is lunchtime at Suma Wholefoods’ distribution warehouse. While most workers across Britain are preparing to
eat an overpriced sandwich at their desks, the 140 staff of the British co-operative are waiting for a plate of hot
food.
2.
At Suma, free lunch is a perk of the job. Meanwhile, as with all the other tasks in the company, staff members take
turns to cook and serve vegetarian food to their colleagues as well as wash up after them.
3.
It is one of the most desirable jobs in the organisation, says Paul Collins, a 50-year-old former music-business
executive who has worked for the company in various roles including marketing and warehouseman, for the past
10 years.
4.
All members at Suma, the UK’s largest workers’ co-operative, receive the same salary, although many choose to
earn less by working part-time. Earlier this year, staff voted themselves a 5 per cent pay increase.
5.
But Suma is about more than numbers. "We have a triple bottom line – that’s people, planet and profit," Collins says.
In other words, Suma is an ethical organisation which values its customers (mainly small independent retailers) and
its members first, rather than faceless shareholders or a small number of rich owners.
6.
This means that staff enjoy seven weeks of holiday a year and incredibly flexible working. There is unlimited paid
overtime available and a generous final salary pension. It’s not surprising that when the company advertised for
new members recently, 600 people applied.
7.
But perhaps the most unusual thing is the fact that there is a completely flat management structure. Richard
Hizzard, 46, who works in sales, says that people often find this hard to understand. "When people start, they
look for a boss. They say, where is the director? But we are all self-managed and we inspire each other," he says.
"It is a strange concept, but clearly it works."
8.
Matt Pinnell, 50, has been a member since 1986. He says, "The reason we have survived, compared with other
co-operatives in the 1970s and 1980s, is because we make a profit and pay a decent wage. Small co-ops can be
like small businesses, where people work 80 or 90-hour weeks, killing themselves and paying themselves very
little. We decided that wasn’t the way to go."
9.
"I have spoken to a lot of business consultants who say, ’you could cut your costs and improve your efficiency’.
We always listen to them, but often we simply don’t want to work like that," he adds. He agrees that some people
might not want to work at Suma because of the "lack of prospects", but he says members prefer a higher quality
of life.
10.
"Most people here lack the intense, ambitious, classic capitalist drive. They enjoy being part of this enterprise but
they are not motivated by more promotion, more status or more money, although we are still a very profitable
company," he says. With no managers, Suma staff are able to be extremely honest. Most admit that decision-
making can be slow, but believe that because all employees can express an opinion, when a decision is made, it is
normally the right one.

Adapted from the Independent, 9 January 2014, by Jonathon Brown

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4 Talking point

Discuss the questions below.

1. According to the article, what are the advantages of the co-operative model for the staff and
business?
2. According to the article, what are the disadvantages of the co-operative model?
3. Would this model work for your business? Why/why not?

5 Find the adjectives

Find adjectives in the text which mean ...

1. too expensive, bad value (P1)

2. wanted (P3)
3. unknown (P5)
4. providing more than enough (P6)
5. strange, not normal (P7)
6. not managed by other people (P7)
7. satisfactory, acceptable (P8)
8. producing profit (P10)

6 Collocations

Match the verbs to the nouns in order to form collocations from the text:

1. work a. a decent wage

2. advertise for b. a decision

3. pay c. an opinion

4. express d. new members

5. make e. part-time

Now complete the sentences on the next page with the above phrases.

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1. The business makes a large profit, so it can afford to its staff .

2. In a co-operative, everybody can . Nobody’s view is ignored.
3. When the co-operative needs more staff, they .
4. You don’t need to work 9-5. You have the option to .
5. It can take a long time to because there is no management structure.

7 Grammar - Present perfect vs. past simple

Look at the following sentences and answer the questions below:

• Matt Pinnell, 50, has been a member since 1986.

• Paul Collins, a 50-year-old former music-business executive who has worked for the
company for the past 10 years.
• Earlier this year, staff voted themselves a 5 per cent pay increase.

1. Which underlined time expressions describe a period of time that started in the past and continued
to the present?
2. Which underlined time expression describes a specific time in the past?
3. Which tense is used in each case?
4. Find another example of the present perfect simple in Paragraph 8 of the article.

8 Practice
Complete the sentences below about a graphic design company called ‘Moonstudio’.

1. Our company (provide) graphic design services for over ten years.
2. The business (be) profitable since 2012.
3. We (establish) our company in 2005.
4. Since the start of the business, we (employ) over 20 staff.
5. Over the past few years, we (invested) in some modern computers.
6. We (start) the company with a limited budget and very little equipment.
7. At the beginning, we (not/have) any decent computers.
8. Over the past few years, we (manage) to make some important deals.
9. Last year, we (sign) a new contract with a big client.
10. So far, we (not/lose) our most talented staff.
11. In 2012, we (hire) a new designer. He (prove) to be one of our most
creative workers to date.

Make three sentences about your company using the past simple and three sentences using the
present perfect simple.

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TEACHER MATERIALS · INTERMEDIATE (B1-B2)

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Key

1. Warm-up

Explain what a co-operative is for students that don’t know – a business, or other organization that is owned and
run jointly by its members, who share the profits or benefits.

2. Key words

Students can work individually and check in pairs. Encourage them to match words that they are familiar with
first in order to eliminate the easier items. Provide examples of use where necessary or allow students to use a
bilingual dictionary/translator app.

1. c 2. d 3. b 4. g 5. f 6. a 7. e

3. Reading

1. F 2. T 3. F 4. F 5. F 6. F 7. F

4. Talking point

1. free lunches, 7 weeks’ holiday, flexible working, decent wages

2. slow decision making, lack of prospects for staff
3. students’ own answers

5. Find the adjectives

1. overpriced 2. desirable 3. faceless 4. generous

5. unusual 6. self-managed 7. decent 8. profitable

6. Collocations

Students can work individually and check in pairs.

1. e 2. d 3. a 4. c 5. b

1. pay (its staff) a decent wage 2. express an opinion 3. advertise for new members
4. work part-time 5. make a decision

7. Grammar - Present perfect vs. past simple

Go through the answers with the students clarifying the difference between the past simple and present perfect,
preferably with the aid of a timeline illustration.

1. since 1986, for the past ten years

2. earlier this year
3. since 1986, for the past ten years: present perfect simple; earlier this year: past simple
4. The reason we have survived, compared with other co-operatives in the 1970s and 1980s, is because we make
a profit and pay a decent wage. (P8)

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8. Practice

Students can work individually and check in pairs.

1. has provided 2. has been 3. established

4. have employed 5. ’ve invested 6. started
7. didn’t have 8. ’ve managed 9. signed
10. haven’t lost 11. hired; has proven

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