A
Digital technology—e－mail and smart phones especially—have vastly improved workers' ability to be productive outside of a traditional office． Even so， most white－collar work still happens in an office． One reason is that， according to findings of a new survey (调查) of office workers conducted by Wakefield Research for the IT company Citrix， most bosses are doubtful about remote working． Half of the workers say their boss doesn't accept it， and only 35 percent say it's tolerated．
Skeptical bosses will likely have their doubts reinforced (加深) by the same survey， which shows that 43 percent of workers say they've watched TV or a movie while “working” remotely， while 35 percent have done housework， and 28 percent have cooked dinner．
It is true， however， that working at home makes people much more efficient (高效的)， because it allows workers to take care of annoying housework while still getting their jobs done． It's much faster， for example， to shop for groceries at a quarter to three than to stand in line during the after－work rush．
The fact that such practices remain officially unaccepted reflects how far we haven't come as a society from the days when we expected every full－time worker to be supported by a full－time homemaker．
More broadly the Wakefield survey suggests that employers may be missing a low－cost way to give workers something of value． Sixty－four percent of those survey participants who haven't worked remotely would rather give up some bonus in order to get even one day a week working from home． Under such circumstances， smart firms need to find ways to let their employees have enough flexibility to manage their time efficiently．
21．Why do some employers hesitate to allow remote working?
A．They fear losing control of their workers．
B．They want to stick to their routine practice．
C．They have little trust in modern technology．
D．They are used to face－to－face communication．
答案：A 推理判断题。该题问的是一些雇主对允许员工远程工作犹豫的原因。根据第二段可推知，他们害怕失去对员工的控制。故选A项。
22．What seems to be most workers' attitude toward remote working?
A．Doubtful． B．Favorable．
C．Reserved． D．Disapproving．
答案：B 推理判断题。由第三段第一句和第三段的内容可推知，员工对远程工作是“赞成的”。A项意为“怀疑的”；C项意为“保守的”；D项意为“不赞成的”。故选B项。
23．What does the author suggest smart firms do?
A．Shorten their office hours．
B．Give employees a pay raise．
C．Adopt flexible work patterns．
D．Reduce their staff's workload．
答案：C 细节理解题。该题问的是作者给予聪明的公司的建议。根据最后一段最后一句可知，作者建议公司采用灵活的工作模式。故选C项。
