2014年12月英语四级考试真题Section B长篇阅读原文

　　下面是学习啦小编整理的2014年12月英语四级考试真题Section B长篇阅读原文，希望对大家有帮助。

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　　In Hard Economy for All Ages, Older Isn’t Better—It’sBrutal

　　[A] Young graduates are in debt, out of work and ontheir parents' couches. People in their 30s and 40scan't afford to buy homes or have children. Retireesare earning near-zero interest on their savings.

　　[B] In the current listless (缺乏活力的) economy,every generation has a claim to having been most injured. But the Labor Department's latestjobs snapshot and other recent data reports present a strong case for crowning baby boomers(二战后生育高峰期出生的人) as the greatest victims of the recession and its dreadfulconsequences.

　　[C] These Americans in their 50s and early 60s — those near retirement age who do not yethave access to Medicare and Social Security — have lost the most earnings power of any agegroup, with their household incomes 10 percent below what they made when the recoverybegan three years ago, according to Sentier Research, a data analysis company. Theirretirement savings and home values fell sharply at the worst possible time: just before theyneeded to cash out. They are supporting both aged parents and unemployed young-adultchildren, earning them the unlucky nickname "Generation Squeeze."

　　[D] New research suggests that they may die sooner, because their health, income securityand mental well-being were battered (重创) by recession at a crucial time in their lives. A recentstudy by economists at Wellesley College found that people who lost their jobs in the few yearsbefore becoming qualified for Social Security lost up to three years from their life expectancy(预期寿命), largely because they no longer had access to affordable health care.

　　[E] Unemployment rates for Americans nearing retirement are far lower than those for youngpeople, who are recently out of school, with fewer skills and a shorter work history. But onceout of a job, older workers have a much harder time finding another one. Over the last year,the average duration of unemployment for older people was 53 weeks, compared with 19weeks for teenagers, according to the Labor Department's jobs report released on Friday.

　　[F] The lengthy process is partly because older workers are more likely to have been laid offfrom industries that are downsizing, like manufacturing. Compared with the rest of thepopulation, older people are also more likely to own their own homes and be less mobile thanrenters, who can move to new job markets.

　　[G] Older workers are more likely to have a disability of some sort, perhaps limiting the rangeof jobs that offer realistic choices. They may also be less inclined, at least initially, to take jobsthat pay far less than their old positions.

　　[H] Displaced boomers also believe they are victims of age discrimination, because employerscan easily find a young, energetic worker who will accept lower pay and who can potentiallystick around for decades rather than a few years.

　　[I] In a survey by the center of older workers who were laid off during the recession, just onein six had found another job, and half of that group had accepted pay cuts. Fourteen percent ofthe re-employed said the pay in their new job was less than half what they earned in theirprevious job. "I just say to myself: 'Why me? What have I done to deserve this?' " said JohnAgati, 56, of Norwalk, Conn., whose last full-time job, as a merchandise buyer and productdeveloper, ended four years ago when his employer went out of business. That position paid$90,000, and his rsum lists stints at companies like American Express, Disney and USANetworks. Since being laid off, though, he has worked a series of part-time, low-wage,temporary positions, including selling shoes at Lord & Taylor and making sales calls for alimo company.

　　[J] The last few years have taken a toll not only on his family's finances, but also on his feelingsof self-worth. "You just get sad," Mr. Agati said. "I see people getting up in the morning, goingout to their careers and going home. I just wish I was doing that. Some people don't like theirjobs, or they have problems with their jobs, but at least they're working. I just wish I was intheir shoes." He said he cannot afford to go back to school, as many younger people withoutjobs have done. Even if he could afford it, economists say it is unclear whether older workerslike him benefit much from more education.

　　[K] "It just doesn't make sense to offer retraining for people 55 and older," said DanielHamermesh, an economics professor at the University of Texas in Austin. "Discrimination byage, long-term unemployment, the fact that they're now at the end of the hiring queue, thelack of time horizon just does not make it sensible to invest in them."

　　[L] Many displaced older workers are taking this message to heart and leaving the labor forceentirely. The share of older people applying for Social Security early spiked during the recessionas people sought whatever income they could find. The penalty they will pay is permanent, asretirees who take benefits at age 62 will receive 30 percent less in each month's check for therest of their lives than they would if they had waited until full retirement age (66 for those bornafter 1942).

　　Those not yet eligible for Social Security are increasingly applying for another, comparable kindof income support that often goes to people who expect never to work again: disabilitybenefits. More than one in eight people in their late 50s is now on some form of federaldisability insurance program, according to Mark Duggan, chairman of the department ofbusiness economics and public policy at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School.

　　The very oldest Americans, of course, were battered by some of the same ill winds thattormented those now nearing retirement, but at least the most senior were cushioned by amore readily available social safety net. More important, in a statistical twist, they may haveactually benefited from the financial crisis in the most fundamental way: prolonged lives.

　　Death rates for people over 65 have historically fallen during recessions, according to aNovember 2011 study by economists at the University of California, Davis. Why? Theresearchers argue that weak job markets push more workers into accepting relativelyundesirable work at nursing homes, leading to better care for residents.