Text 12

The proletariat mostly became better off. Economic growth did enable Capitalists to make more profit, but, ultimately, workers benefited from real wage rises. In the nineteenth and twentieth century, labour was often exploited with poor conditions and low wages. But, workers have become better off. After all, it is in the interests of Capitalists to have a workforce who can afford to buy their goods. The elusive 'dictatorship of the Proletariat' in practice tended to be more about 'dictatorship' and less about the proletariat. In some ways Marx was a democrat. He was criticising a system which did not extend the vote to large sways of the working class; he wanted these disenfranchised workers to be enfranchised. But, in practise, Marxism is indelibly linked to the totalitarian state of the Soviet Union.

I can imagine some readers (especially in America) thinking why even mention Marx? Surely, he was hopelessly flawed and the inspiration behind the despotic Stalinist regime? It is worth mentioning what John Maynard Keynes says on Marxism (1931)

"How can I accept the [Communist] doctrine, which sets up as its bible, above and beyond criticism, an obsolete textbook which I know not only to be scientifically erroneous but without interest or application to the modern world? How can I adopt a creed which, preferring the mud to the fish, exalts the boorish proletariat above the bourgeoisie and the intelligentsia, who with all their faults, are the quality of life and surely carry the seeds of all human achievement? Even if we need a religion, how can we find it in the turbid rubbish of the red bookshop? It is hard for an educated, decent, intelligent son of Western Europe to find his ideals here, unless he has first suffered some strange and horrid process of conversion which has changed all his values."

Text 13

On average, a Ukrainian professional will hold 8-14 jobs during his or her lifetime, so learning to work with new colleagues is a reality in every workplace. Nonetheless, getting settled at a new job can be stressful. There are ways of coping with the stresses of a new job, though:

• Know your job description. In order to work efficiently and effectively, you should know what your duties are; this will help you to feel confident about what you are doing. Talk to your new colleagues. Ask them about office priorities, and ask questions whenever necessary to clarify things you don’t understand. Whatever you do, don’t behave like a know-it-all.

• Communicate with your new colleagues. First impressions are important. On your first day of work at a new job, make a point of greeting everyone in the room, and don’t be afraid to make eye contact while doing so. During the first weeks in a new work environment your emotional comfort is less dependent on your professional achievements than on your ability to communicate with your colleagues in a friendly and professional manner. Good communication will also help you to work as a team in the future.

• Don’t gossip. There are always those long-time employees who cling to newcomers in hopes of sharing office rumors and gossip. Avoid office gossip as a rule.

• Don’t be TOO nice. Newcomers often try to do whatever they can to be accepted: they smile at everybody, make coffee for the whole department, or perform jobs that are not expected of them. Don’t do it. You should understand that you are an asset to the organization that hired you. You were chosen from among many applicants for your position and that means that you are a true professional and the best person for this job. You have not entered into a hostile camp, but into a well-set team which surely has its own rules and regulations – a team that also needs you.

• Know when to hold your tongue. Avoid arguments with your boss or colleagues in the first few weeks at a new job. Even if you are certain that you are correct, arguing will not resolve the problem.

• Take heed of the dress code. You should pay attention to the way people around you are dressed; your clothes should correspond to your new office environment.

• Interview your boss. After about a month at a new job, set up a meeting with your boss to see what he or she thinks about how you are doing.