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Importance of Learning English
Taking the step to learn English is probably the best thing one can do improve their life. Everything is easier when you can speak and write English, accomplishments are easier and success comes faster, personal and professional achievements are limitless.
Most multinational companies now require their employees to speak English because English is the language most used for international trade at the moment. Companies often look unfavorably on a poor ESL student who wishes a job which requires competent English language skills . It is not the most spoken language in the world but it has the largest number of secondary speakers. The reasons for this date far back in history, the British Empire imposed the use of English and the US followed suit. After Mandarin English is spoken by more people than any other language, and is the native language of more than 350 million people. For one to say that you are “nothing without English” is by far an exaggerated statement, being proficient in any foreign language is an asset to anyone’s life, however being proficient in English opens the door to a lot more golden opportunities nowadays. In respect of this, English is the international language of diplomacy, business, science, banking, computing, aviation, medicine, engineering, tourism, media and without doubt the best music in the world. English is used as the medium of teaching in the best universities worldwide and is increasingly used in interviews and as a perquisite for the best secondary schools in Europe, America and Asia.
Many people study English for academic purposes and others primarily for work. Many people must pass an English language exam such as IELTS in order to emigrate or enter a foreign school or university. In order to advance in the professional world, you must have proper English. In order to obtain a good career as well as respect from your peers you have to be literate and well educated. An additional reason for studying English is for communication. You are much more accepted in the world if you portray yourself better. People will think of you in a better way and you will have a better chance of being accepted.
The ability to communicate in English is even higher rated than a good knowledge in the field of business and economy. However, having the basic knowledge of English is not sufficient for one to surpass all the barriers they might face in an English community. The English language is comprised of about 700,000 words; the typical English speaker only uses 50,000. Most educated people who have a degree, or who read books will have a vocabulary that is closer to 100,000. Thus the people that know more than just basic English are more likely to land a job that pays extremely well.
The English language is a powerful tool, knowing it and using it properly will more than likely open the doors to a blissful world of golden opportunities, so this is why it is important to learn English. A good spoken English also improves a person ability to study other courses in the English speaking world such as history, geography, economics, psychology, maths and many more.
A knowledge of English allows a person to read the vast out of informative articles availabe in English language news on the internet.
Employee Absence – Using the Bradford Factor Formula

- HR Software
- Human Resources Software
- Workforce Management Software
- Absence Reporting
- Payroll Software
- HR Outsourcing
- HR System
- Absence Management Software
- Business Continuity Planning
- Expense Management Software
Employee sickness absence costs UK businesses millions of pounds every year; yet not all organisations have a firm grip on how often their employees take sick days and for how long at a time. A recent CIPD survey estimated that the average cost of sickness per employee per year is £666; organisations of any size and industry should be addressing this issue as soon as possible.
One method that can be used is the application of the ‘Bradford Factor’ (BF) formula. The BF formula is a means of measuring employee absenteeism that takes into account how disruptive the absence is to the organisation in question. Frequent unplanned absences are typically more disruptive to an organisation that long-term absences, as they don’t provide the organisation with any time to re-plan, re-schedule and re-distribute work amongst other employees. Therefore the BF formula places more weight on these kinds of absences.
The Formula Explained
B = S² x D
B represents the Employee’s Bradford Factor Score.
S represents the number of continuous instances of absence in the previous rolling year.
D represents the total number of days of absence in the previous rolling year.
Therefore if we use the example of an employee who is absent 5 times throughout the rolling absence year, for a total period of 8 days (e.g. 4 absences of 1 day & 1 of 4 days), their Bradford Factor score will be thus:
B = 5² x (1+1+1+1+4)
B = 5² x 8
B = 200
Application of the Bradford Factor Score
The Bradford Factor score therefore provides the organisation using it with a measurable means of ’scoring’ the severity of an employee’s absence patterns. Typically for speed and visibility of this information, organisations will then make use of the reporting features in their HR software system to derive company-wide reporting of these statistics on all employees.
The human resources department can then determine a level of acceptable absence to the organisation based upon typical averages. Using management information reporting, those employees who exceed acceptable levels of absence (scoring high on the Bradford Factor scale) can be flagged up and addressed through meetings with HR and line management. Modern HR systems can automatically alert HR when pre-defined levels are exceeded.
The implementation of the Bradford Factor formula can also simply act as a deterrent to those employees who think that taking a high level of individual days may go unnoticed versus an employee who takes long-term sickness. However, the number of days is unimportant against the disruption it causes.
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