A、At half past eight. B、At half past nine. C、At nine o’clock. D、At ten o’clock. C

W: First of all, when do people start work in American offices?
M: Well, the official work day starts at 9:00 a.m. This should really mean 9 o’clock -- not ten past nine.
W: Would you say that people work very hard in offices in America?
M: In America one is being paid for his or her time. So employees are expected to find other work if their own desks are
clear, or to help someone else with his or her work. But you never sit idle, or doing nothing.
W: Yes, as the saying goes: "time is money".
M: Exactly. Your employer "owns" your time while he is paying you for it. And anyway the boss doesn’t ask more of you than he
is doing himself: he... he will probably work through the lunch hour himself and even take work home at night.
W: Er... could you say something about contracts of hiring in America, please?
M: Well, it’s different in America from, say Europe, I’m not sure. We are more democratic. It means perhaps that we won’t
develop such a permanent relationship between employer and employee.
W: You mean that your employer can just fire you in America.’?
M: No, no, no. There are, of course, legal protections in the USA. So employees cannot be unjustly fired without good reason.
W: Oh, talking about coffee breaks.
M: Ha-ha, nearly all offices have mid-morning and mid-afternoon coffee breaks. But you should remember that although 15
minutes are allowed twice a day for relaxation and chatter, many employees take coffee to their desks and keep on working.