Plan this opinion essay about globalisation with the ideas and outline below, write it on a 40-minute timer, then compare it with a band-8 model answer.
You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
Write about the following topic:
Many companies have moved factories and jobs to countries where labour is cheaper. This is a positive development.
To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Write at least 250 words.
GoPrep wrote this practice question in the style of the exam. It is not an official IELTS question.
Pick two or three points from one or both columns. You do not need all of them, and your own examples score better than memorised ones.
Spend the first few minutes planning, then write.
0 words of 250 minimum
Your answer stays on this page only. Copy it before you leave.
Write your own answer first, then compare: how it answers the exact question, what each paragraph does, and which phrases you could borrow.
Many firms have transferred their factories and jobs to countries with lower labour costs. I disagree that this is a positive development overall, although it does have some advantages.
Supporters of this practice make two main points. Firstly, producing in cheaper locations allows companies to lower their prices, which benefits consumers, who can buy clothes, phones and household goods at affordable levels. Secondly, the move brings employment and income to poorer nations. A garment factory in Bangladesh or Vietnam can provide wages that are higher than those available in farming, and the training workers receive may develop skills which can later be used to start domestic industries. In some cases, foreign investment has helped economies to grow quickly.
Despite this, I believe the negative effects are more important. In the countries that lose the jobs, entire communities can be damaged. When a large factory closes, workers who have spent their lives in one trade often struggle to find new employment, and local shops, schools and services decline too. Detroit, once the centre of the American car industry, is a well-known example. Meanwhile, in the destination countries, labour standards are often weak. Employees may work long hours for very low wages in unsafe conditions, as the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory in 2013 showed. Cheap goods therefore carry a hidden human cost, and companies that move production mainly to increase profit are not acting responsibly.
A fairer approach would be for companies to invest in training at home and to insist on decent conditions wherever they operate, supported by international rules.
In conclusion, moving jobs abroad lowers prices and creates work in poorer nations, but the damage to communities and the exploitation of workers mean that I cannot see it as positive overall.
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| outsource | give work to outside firms |
| cheap labour | workers paid low wages |
| relocate | move to another place |
| working conditions | environment and rules at work |
| job losses | people losing work |
| economic growth | rise in economic output |
Answer random Part 1, 2 and 3 questions on an exam timer.
Average your four skill bands, rounded the way IELTS rounds them.
Compare an IELTS band with TOEFL, Duolingo and PTE scores and CEFR levels.
Look up the IELTS score a university asks for, with the source.