Jobs and professions

A job is an occupation or employment. It is an activity that requires a person´s mental of physical effort.

If a person is trained for certain type of job, he has a profession.

Generally people get a job after they have received specialized training or a college degree. Some exception are the students who get a part-time job, where they can work fewer hours per week.

The constant changes in the world and advances in technology have made that continuing education or training will be essential for workers.

Some of the professionals that require continuing education are: teachers, engineers, doctors, accountants, etc. Having a job or profession is very important because you can contribute to the community. You help to make the economy and your community stronger. You are a productive citizen and a valuable community member. When you work, you develop new skills, learn new things and create a record of employment. Then when you want to get a job, your experiences can help to do that.

It is important to consider that when you have a job or profession, you have self-respect, dignity and self-worth. You are being responsible and making sure that you can take care of yourself.

Adjectives to describe a job

Adjectives are descriptive words. They help you to describe people or things (nouns). Adjectives also can be used to describe the characteristics of a job or profession.

What is the job like?

Examples:

Relative pronouns and relative clauses

A relative pronoun is a word using to give more information about people, things or places.

Relative pronouns:

• That for things and people.
• Who for people.
• Where for places and locations.
• Which for things.

Look at the examples:

• The book that is on the table is mine.
• The President who is in this picture, is the President of the United States.
• The city where I was born, is Salamanca, Gto.
• The song which you are listening to, is my favorite song.

Analyze the examples above and note that the relative pronouns also join two sentences. The relative pronoun connect the main clause withe the relative clause:

That´s the hotel where I worked last summer.

Main clause: That´s the hotel.

Relative clause: Where I worked last summer.

Types of relative clauses:

1. Defining relative clause

a) The relative pronoun is the subject. It tells exactly which person or thing you are talking about. Defining relative clauses are not put in commas.

Example:

You could note that the relative pronoun is followed by a verb.

More examples:

• I am looking for a secretary who takes a message.
• An office is the place where works a secretary.
• Stapler and paper clip are items which keep things together.

b) Often when relative pronoun is the object of the relative clause, you can leave it out.

Example:

This is the message that I sent last night
or excluding the relative pronoun when is the object. This is the message I sent last night.

You could note that the relative pronoun is followed by a pronoun.

More examples:

• What is the name of the place ( where ) you work?
  What is the name of the place you work?
• What are the job skills (which ) you have learned?
  What are the job skill you have learned.
• This is the truck (that) you drive.
  This is the truck you dirve.

2. Non-defining relative clauses

They are put in commas. You don´t use that in non-defining relative clauses. You use which for things, who for people and where for places. Non- defining relative clauses provide more information about something or someone, but do not define it. If you remove it from the sentence, the sentence still being grammatically correct and the meaning don´t change.

Example:

• The book, which is on the table, is mine.

If you remove the non- defining relative clause: which is on the table, the sentence is grammatically correct:

• The book is mine.

Tools and job skills

Job skills are personal abilities and talents that help employees and professionals to do their work. Depending on the sort of work at issue, skills can be different.

The following are some examples of job skills needed for a specific work.

• A chef needs to know how to cook and bake.
• A taxi driver needs to know how to drive and read road signals.
• A manager needs to know to organize a company and take decisions.

A tool is a physical item that can be used to do a specific work. Tools can be classified according to their application or use:

For example:

• Tools and building supplies:

• Tools and office supplies:

• Tools and medical supplies:

Fuente: Secretaría de Educación Pública. (2015). Lengua adicional al español IV. Ciudad de México.