• Read the article below.
• For each question (1-8) mark one letter (A, B or C) to choose the correct answer.
The Future is Freelance – and That is Healthy
1. In recent years a pronounced structural shift has taken place in the employment market in Britain. The numbers who work for themselves are growing, while the ranks of those who work for the government are declining.
2. Within the next three years, the total number of self-employed will outnumber those who are employed by the state. This has important implications for our politics, culture and economy.
3. Public sector workers are frequently union members, and enjoy defined benefit pensions. The self-employed are the opposite: often they are freelancers, possessing an independence and freedoms that civil servants can only dream about; but they don't enjoy the very expensive safety net that comes with working for the state.
4. These trends are likely to continue. In most developed nations the government workforce is being downsized. In the long term this evolution is healthy. For decades, debate about public services such as education and healthcare has dominated the media and been the overwhelming focus of UK legislators. This should change. The new labour market means micro businesses are becoming ever more important while large employers shrink, thanks to automation and globalization, and fragmentation of industries.
5. Lawmakers should make it their business to understand how these phenomena are altering the priorities, and adjust their policies accordingly. Currently the self-employed are highly dispersed community, but as their numbers grow, they will use technology to ensure their voice is heard in parliament the same way union bosses represent state workers such as teachers or Tube drivers.
6. Of course, life for a freelancer is never as certain as it is for the salaried worker: it takes courage to break out on your own. Most freelancers never end up hiring. But almost every entrepreneur of any description, including Steve Jobs and Bill Gates started out as freelancers, normally working from a bedroom or a garage.
7. The growing numbers of freelancers stimulate free enterprise, innovation and wealth creation, and create a more adaptable company, better equipped to deal with the challenges of the modern global economy.

1. The numbers of salaried workers are
A. increasing
B. declining
C. the same
2. For our economy this situation is
A. important
B. indifferent
C. typical
3. Those who work for the government
A. have freedoms
B. possess an independence
C. enjoy pensions
4. These trends are
A. dangerous B. healthy
C. unhealthy
5. What should be changed? A. the attitude to education
B. the attitude to micro businesses
C. the attitude to large employers
6. Lawmakers should understand
A. teachers
B. the self-employed
C. tube drivers
7. What kind of people are freelancers?
A. adventurous
B. modest
C. charismatic
8. The growing numbers of freelancers
A. mean unemployment
B. create an adaptable company
C. demonstrate a better corporate culture