Read the following article from a website.
On Merrow Island, off the coast of Nova Scotia, the last large employer is a seafood plant that cannot find enough workers. Five years ago, three outside companies employed about six hundred islanders, but two of them have since left. Ottawa is now reviewing how quickly employers in regions like this one may hire workers from abroad, and a public hearing on the island last week drew more than two hundred people.
Signe Fenwick, who owns the plant, says the permit process moves too slowly for a seasonal business. “Last spring I advertised thirty-six jobs here and filled nine,” she told the hearing. “The permits for the rest came through in August, when half the season was already gone. If the rules do not change, the plant closes, and the islanders who work there lose their jobs too.” Fenwick says she has raised wages twice in three years without attracting local applicants.
Arturo Gallardo, president of the plant workers’ union, does not object to hiring from abroad. His concern is a permit that ties a worker to a single employer. “A worker who can be sent home for complaining will not complain about anything,” Gallardo said. “Give them the same wage as everyone on the line and the right to change jobs, and most of the problems disappear. That is not a lot to ask.” He adds that the union has offered to help newcomers find housing, which he calls “the next crisis nobody is planning for.”
Marit Easterbrook, president of the community college, warns that fast permits could leave island youth behind. “If an employer can always hire from abroad, why would anyone train a teenager from here?” she asked. “Our welding and food safety courses had empty seats this fall.” Easterbrook would accept quicker approvals if part of each permit fee paid for training island residents. Kwesi Fosu, the island’s economic development officer, thinks the debate is too narrow. “One plant cannot carry an economy,” Fosu said. “We should be bringing back the kind of offices we lost, firms that can serve clients anywhere from here.”
Using the drop-down menu (▾), choose the best option according to the information given on the website.
Gallardo’s position would likely be supported by 2..
At present, Fosu sees the island as 3..
The reporter presents the issue as 4..
This article shows that 5..
The following is a comment by a visitor to the website page. Complete the comment by choosing the best option to fill in each blank.
AI explanationShows the answer. Tap to open.
Correct Answer: how fast employers may bring in workers from overseas
Why this is correct: Ottawa is reviewing how quickly employers in regions like the island may hire workers from abroad. Every speaker responds to that review.
Passage Reference: Ottawa is now reviewing how quickly employers in regions like this one may hire workers from abroad
Tips: Check each option against what Fenwick, Gallardo, Easterbrook and Fosu say. Pick the option that is still true after you have read every quote.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a plan to build housing for seasonal workers: Gallardo mentions housing as a coming problem. Nobody describes a plan to build it.
- the closing of the island’s seafood plant: Fenwick warns the plant could close. It has not closed, and that is only one part of the debate.
- new courses offered at the community college: Easterbrook talks about courses with empty seats, not new ones.
Correct Answer: a study showing workers free to change jobs speak up more
Passage Reference: A worker who can be sent home for complaining will not complain about anything ... Give them the same wage as everyone on the line and the right to change jobs
Why this is correct: Gallardo says a worker who can be sent home for complaining will not complain. A study showing that free workers speak up more would back his call for the right to change jobs.
Tips: Read every sentence Gallardo says. Ask of each option: if this were true, would his case look better, or would it help somebody else’s case?
Why the other options are wrong:
- proof that local people turn down plant jobs even at higher pay: This would help Fenwick, who raised wages without finding local workers. It says nothing about permits that tie a worker to one employer.
- figures showing college classes on the island are half empty: Empty seats in courses are Easterbrook’s concern. They do not touch Gallardo’s point about workers’ rights.
- news that office firms want to open on the island: New office firms are what Fosu hopes for. They have nothing to do with Gallardo’s point about permits.
Correct Answer: leaning too heavily on one employer
Passage Reference: One plant cannot carry an economy ... We should be bringing back the kind of offices we lost
Why this is correct: Fosu says one plant cannot carry an economy. Fosu wants the island to bring back the kind of offices it lost, so today it depends on a single plant.
Tips: Read Fosu’s quoted sentences and the line that introduces Fosu. Keep the option his words describe as true now, and cross out ideas from the other three speakers.
Why the other options are wrong:
- short of homes for the workers who arrive: Housing for newcomers is what Gallardo warns about. Fosu does not mention it.
- ready for permits that move much faster: Faster permits are what Fenwick wants. Fosu thinks the debate about permits is too narrow.
- losing its teenagers to colleges elsewhere: Easterbrook worries that island youth will be left behind, not that they leave. Fosu says nothing about teenagers.
Correct Answer: a serious question for a small community
Passage Reference: the last large employer is a seafood plant that cannot find enough workers ... but two of them have since left
Why this is correct: In the reporter’s own words, the last large employer on the island cannot find enough workers. Two of three outside companies have already left, which shows how much is at stake.
Tips: Leave the quotes aside and read only the reporter’s own sentences. Check each option against those words and drop any opinion the reporter never gives.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a fight that the plant owner deserves to win: The reporter never takes Fenwick’s side. Each view is reported without the writer’s own opinion.
- an amusing clash between islanders and newcomers: Nothing in the reporter’s words is meant to be funny. The tone is plain and serious.
- a problem that will soon solve itself: The reporter gives no sign of this. Ottawa is reviewing the rules because the problem is real.
Correct Answer: each speaker wants something different from the review
Passage Reference: the permit process moves too slowly for a seasonal business ... Give them the same wage as everyone on the line and the right to change jobs ... Easterbrook would accept quicker approvals if part of each permit fee paid for training island residents. ... Kwesi Fosu, the island’s economic development officer, thinks the debate is too narrow.
Why this is correct: Fenwick wants faster permits and Gallardo wants equal wages and the right to change jobs. Easterbrook wants fees to pay for training, and Fosu thinks the debate is too narrow.
Tips: Go through Fenwick, Gallardo, Easterbrook and Fosu in turn. Keep the statement that is still true after you have read every one of them.
Why the other options are wrong:
- islanders refuse to take jobs at the seafood plant: Fenwick says few local people applied. Nobody says islanders refuse, and some already work at the plant.
- faster permits would fix every problem on the island: This is close to Fenwick’s view only. Gallardo, Easterbrook and Fosu each say more is needed.
- the plant owner has already decided to close: Fenwick warns the plant could close if the rules stay the same. She has not decided to close it.
Correct Answer: two hundred
Passage Reference: a public hearing on the island last week drew more than two hundred people
Why this is correct: The public hearing last week drew more than two hundred people.
Tips: A crowd size is missing here. Check the report of last week’s public meeting.
Why the other options are wrong:
- three hundred: The article does not report a crowd of three hundred.
- four hundred: The article does not report a crowd this large.
- six hundred: Six hundred is the number of islanders once employed by outside companies, not the crowd at the hearing.
Correct Answer: twice
Passage Reference: she has raised wages twice in three years without attracting local applicants
Why this is correct: Fenwick says she has raised wages twice in three years without attracting local applicants.
Tips: Look for what the owner says she has already tried to get islanders onto the line. The blank asks how often she did it.
Why the other options are wrong:
- once: Fenwick gives a higher number than once.
- three times: Three is the number of years in Fenwick’s statement, not the number of raises.
- four times: Four raises are not mentioned in the article.
Correct Answer: August
Passage Reference: The permits for the rest came through in August
Why this is correct: Fenwick says the permits for the rest of her workers came through in August, when half the season was gone.
Tips: The commenter wants a month. Read the owner’s account of when her missing staff were finally approved.
Why the other options are wrong:
- May: May is not mentioned in the article.
- June: June is not mentioned in the article.
- October: October is not mentioned in the article.
Correct Answer: the next crisis nobody is planning for
Passage Reference: which he calls “the next crisis nobody is planning for.”
Why this is correct: Gallardo calls housing “the next crisis nobody is planning for.” The commenter repeats his words.
Tips: The commenter is using the union president’s own label for the housing problem. Find the exact words he uses.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a problem the plant should solve: Gallardo says the union offered to help with housing. Gallardo does not hand the problem to the plant.
- the price of growing too fast: Gallardo does not use these words.
- the island’s oldest complaint: Gallardo describes housing as a coming problem, not an old one.
Correct Answer: welding and food safety
Passage Reference: Our welding and food safety courses had empty seats this fall.
Why this is correct: Easterbrook says the college’s welding and food safety courses had empty seats this fall.
Tips: Read the college president’s remark about her classes, and note which subjects she names.
Why the other options are wrong:
- fish handling and first aid: Easterbrook does not name these courses.
- forklift and machine safety: Easterbrook does not name these courses.
- boat repair and refrigeration: Easterbrook does not name these courses.
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