Unit 09
Product Recall
職場攻略/市場業務
Workplace English/Communication skills
BRAIN STORM
Share your ideas with your teacher and try to make sentences.
What do you think is a product recall?
VOCABULARY
Repeat these sentences after your teacher.
1. hit the nail on the head (phr.) 說對了
This issue hits the nail on the head for us.
馬這個問題對我們來說非常重要。
2. post (n.) 崗位，職位
Why did the customer post his concern online?
客戶為什麼要在網上發布他的問題？
3. hammer down (phr.) 大動作
She put the hammer down for this recall.
為了這次召回，她放下了錘子。
4. cover-up (n.) 遮遮掩掩
How can we make a cover up on this matter?
我們如何掩蓋這件事？
5. cut corners (v.) 偷工減料
You should fall in line and not cut corners.
您應該排成一列，不要偷工減料。
6. recall (adj.) 召回
She wants a product recall.
她想召回產品。
7. negligence (n.) 玩忽職守
We should admit our negligence in this case.
在這種情況下，我們應該承認我們的疏忽。
Dialogue
Read the dialogue aloud with your teacher.
Steve, did you happen to watch CNN last night? It looks like you hit the nail on the head about Mary Barra.
Steve，昨晚看沒看CNN？看上去你對Mary Barra真是說準了。
Yeah it sure looks like it doesn’t it? I had assumed she was going to start her new post making a big statement, but she really put the hammer down with this recall didn’t’ she?
看上去是啊，不是嗎？我以為她新上任會做一個重要的申明，她這次召回產品可真是大動作啊，不是嗎？
She sure did, but how were you so certain it wasn’t a cover-up from the start? You know how GM is about trying to cut corners to save a few dollars after all.
是啊。但你怎麼知道這不是遮遮掩掩呢?你知道GM在偷工減料，省幾塊錢上是什麼樣子。
That’s the very reason I knew it couldn’t be a cover-up. Did you notice the cost it was to GM to replace those electric ignition units? Less than $1 per automobile was the expected expense on this recall!
這正是我說著不是虛晃一招的原因。你知道GM更換這些電子打火裝置要花多少錢嗎？這次召回，每輛車的估計成本不足1美元！
That’s a good point. $1 a car for what, 2.6 million cars was it? That sure is a whole lot less than the $35 million dollar penalty the government assessed GM for negligence. Not to mention the estimated $1.3 billion in long term punitive damages they expect to receive over this.
說得好。每輛車1美元，共有260萬輛對嗎？這比政府對GM疏忽職守的3500萬美元罰款可少多了。更別提估值為13億美元的長期懲罰損失了。
Exactly my point Tom! There is no way that their economic analysts couldn’t have foreseen such an outcome. This is simply someone dropping the ball and Barra is making sure they’re being held accountable for their actions.
這正是我的看法，Tom！他們的經濟分析員一定預料到了這個結果。有人闖了禍，Barra只是確認他們會為自己的行為負責而已。
No doubt there will be a few heads that roll before all is said and done. There have been 13 deaths due to this faulty part before the recall was even announced and it has been going on for over 10 years.
一切結束之前，毫無疑問，有人要倒霉了。召回宣布之前，故障部件已經導致13起死亡，而這故障存在已經10年多了。
True, money is one thing but when human lives are involved the media goes into a feeding frenzy wanting to hang someone. Either way, it’s going to get ugly real fast.
對，錢是一碼事，但與人命有關，媒體就一擁而上，非要有人受過才罷休。無論怎樣，這很快就非常難看了。
Big mistakes like this sure don’t instill confidence to run out and buy ‘American’ like we used to does it?
這樣的大錯，對於“去買美國製造吧”可沒好處，不是嗎？
It is sad but you’re right. Hopefully we’ll see a new era of regrowth by GM with Barra at the helm now. I like what I see in her background and feel she can make significant changes towards turning them back around.
這讓人難過，但你是對的。在Barra帶領下，GM可能走入新的增長時期。我喜歡我在她背景中看到的東西，我覺得她能夠做出重要改變，帶領GM東山再起。
Grammar
rhetorical questioning
1. It sure looks like it, doesn’t it?
2. Who knows?
3. What were you thinking?!
DISCUSSION
Make a conversation with your teacher.
1.What do you think are the factors that will affect a products quality?
