我们先来看一则相关对话
A:Hey, what’s eating you? You look down in the dumps.
B:Oh, I was laid off because the company was downsizing. I have mortgage to pay so the financial burden has been on my mind.
A:I’m sorry to hear that. Actually, I happen to know someone who might be able to help you land a job. He has great contacts in the field.
B:Really? Thanks so much. I’m willing to give it a shot.
A：嘿，你怎么了？你看起来很沮丧。
B：哦，我被解雇了，因为公司正在缩编。我要偿还抵押贷款，所以我一直在担忧财务负担。
A：听到这个消息我很难过。事实上，我碰巧认识一个人，他可能会帮你找到工作。他在这个领域有很好的人脉。
B：真的吗？非常感谢。我愿意试一试。
再来看一则新闻报导
Google announced plans to lay off 12,000 people from its workforce Friday, while Microsoft said Wednesday that it’s letting go of 10,000 employees. Amazon also began a fresh round of job cuts that are expected to eliminate more than 18,000 employees and become the largest workforce reduction in the e-retailer’s 28-year history.
Google周五宣布计画裁员1.2万人，而微软周三表示，将裁员1万人。亚马逊也开始了新一轮裁员计画，预计裁员人数将超过1.8万人，成为该电子零售商28年来最大规模的裁员。
以下是相关用语
裁员 lay sb off
lay sb off 表「裁员」，名词为 layoff。裁员可能是因为公司营运不善或是公 司规模缩编（downsize），跟「开除」是不一样的。而且会有「资遣费」（severance pay）。
100,000 federal workers will be laid off to reduce the deficit.
10万联邦公务人员将被辞退以减少赤字。
It will close more than 200 stores nationwide resulting in the layoffs of an estimated 2,000 employees.
它将关闭全国200多家店铺，估计会有2,000名员工因此被裁员。
炒某人鱿鱼 fire sb = let sb go ; 开除某人用动词fire 也可以用片语 let sb go。
Peterson was let go after less than two years.
不到两年彼得森就被解雇了。
大幅削减 slash
这个字常用于报章杂志，表「大幅度削减、大大降低」。
The workforce has been slashed by half.
职工人数裁减了一半。
削减、裁减经费或生意 cut back sth / cut back on sth
We had to cut back (on) production.
我们只得减产。
削减、裁减经费或生意 scale sth back / down
We are scaling down our training program mes next year.
我们将在明年缩小培训计画。
缩编 downsize
The company chose to downsize and more fully utilize the remaining workers.
公司决定缩小规模，并更加充分地用好余下的工人。
无薪假 unpaid leave
Several car-makers in India and South Korea have asked staff to take unpaid leave.
一些印度和韩国汽车厂商已要求员工无薪休假。
失业的 unemployed
His financial problems escalated after he became unemployed.
他的财务问题在他失业后加剧了。
待业中 between jobs
与其直接（且略带负面语气）地说某人现在处于「失业状态」，我们会用「待业中」来婉转其词。而「待业中」的英文就是 be between jobs，直接翻译是「在两个工作之间」，也就是说，离开了上一份工作，还没开始下一份工作。
（通常因发不出工资而给的）无薪假 furlough
Many employees were furloughed during the recession.
许多雇员在不景气时被放无薪假。
Dozens of workers at the factory have been placed on furlough.
那间工厂有数十名员工被放无薪假。
（尤指供大学教师进行学术研究或旅行的）公休假 sabbatical
Currently, Professor Lin is on a two-year sabbatical from his school.
林教授目前正在休学校给他的两年公休假。
解雇通知 a pink slip
slip是名词，表示「纸条；纸张」。过去在美国每当员工被解雇时，会拿到装薪水的信封里，会附上一张解聘通知，而这张通知通常是粉红色的，因此pink slip就引申为「解雇通知书」。注意，这个字也可以当动词用喔！
Dan just received a pink slip from his company and now he has to look for a new job.
阿丹刚被公司解雇，所以他现在需要再找新工作。
即便这波裁员潮目前尚未吹进台湾，但我们也要有高度危机意识。其实我们不管正在做什么工作，都要充实自己，让自己在跨领域能够成长，如此一来就不会担心在就业市场无用武之地。若真有不对劲，也才能最充裕准备下跳船，做最好的转身。
