19. The rights of a customer and the responsibilities of a supplier.

When you buy something from a shop, you are making a contract. But you want to make sure if this contract means that it's up to the shop to deal with your complaints if the goods are not satisfactory. The first thing that comes to your mind is that the goods must not be broken or damaged and must work properly. The second thing that you find important is that the goods must be as described - whether on the pack or by the salesman. A hair-drier which the box says is blue should not turn out to be pink…It makes you understand the third principle: The goods should be fit for their purpose. This means the purpose for which most people buy those particular goods. If you wanted something for a special purpose, you must have said exactly what for.

Many people think that complaining about faulty goods or bad service is never easy. Most of them dislike making a fuss. However, when you are shopping, it is important to know your rights. I am quite sure that if the shop sells you faulty goods, it has broken its side of the bargain. It must sell satisfactory goods, i.e. the goods that have a merchandise quality. For example, a clock that doesn’t go when you wound it, cannot be called a satisfactory good. And that is absolutely right. In this situation customer have the right to return the goods and have a complete refund.

If goods are faulty when you first inspect or use them, you should go back to the shop, say that you cancel the purchase and ask for complete refund. If the customer prefers, he can accept a repair or a replacement. If goods break down through no fault of yours, after you have used them for a while, you may still be entitled to a compensation. In some cases it would be reasonable to expect a complete refund. But if the good worked perfectly for a while and then broke, one could only expect some of the purchase price back. Everyone should understand that he and the supplier must negotiate a reasonable settlement.

20. Costs of economic growth. Labour problems.

Топик хреноват, но я уже задолбалась, честно говоря. Если что, сами что-нить там наболтаете. А лучше молитесь, чтобы он вам не попался.

In recent years, many people have argued that economic growth is a mixed blessing. The advantages of growth are fairly clear. What are the disadvantages then? Four of them are: (1) use of natural resources that cannot be replaced, (2) generation of waste products, (3) destruction of natural environments, (4) uneven growth among different groups of society.

There is one more problem concerning economic growth that is called labour problem. At the time of growth the old equipment is replaced with the new one, and many workers become redundant because the work they do are no longer required. For example, the introduction of computer typesetting in the 70-es spelled unemployment for many Linotype and other machine operators. The research showed that the computerization spells unemployment on one hand but makes a lot of jobs easier on the other. Those who lost their jobs in this connection either find full or part-time employment or take retraining programs. But another research studied what happened to a number of families when employment of typesetters was reduced due to the introduction of computers. It showed that employment was closely connected with age, ability to obtain new skills, family status and so on. The remaining workers continued to seek employment. Many tried retraining programs, but found that employers were reluctant to hire older, experienced persons as beginners. However none of the operators under 40 years of age obtained a high-paying job, many of the workers had taken jobs delivering flowers, polishing glass, stock-clerking, or driving taxis. Others did such odd jobs as painting and home repairs to earn income. Retraining in new skills is only one solution to the problem, and not a simple one. Retraining probably is more useful to the young man than to the old.