We Speak with me, Feifei...

...and me, Roy.

We may sound a little different - that's

because we are not able to record

in our normal studios

during the coronavirus outbreak. Roy,

why have you shaved off your beard?

I don't think

I've seen your chin before.

Well, I got your voice message - you told

me to trim my beard. You said it's sad, but

necessary to keep my fur low due

to the coronavirus. I thought it was

a bit weird as my beard is

made of hair - not fur.

I'm not a dog, Feifei.

That's debatable... I saw you run after a

ball Neil threw for you. Anyway, I wasn't

talking about your beard. I said

it's very sad at the moment that

some workers have been

furloughed, but it's necessary for

some businesses to do it.

'To furlough someone' is when workers

are put on a leave of absence,

for example due to an

economic problem the business is

going through.

Ahhh yeah - that actually makes

more sense. I was so confused

about why you were

talking about my beard. I agree, it is

really sad that some people

have been furloughed.

That's our word for this

programme, isn't it?

It is, and it's not a new word,

but it's certainly more commonly used

recently due to the coronavirus

crisis. We'll talk about it more

after these examples...

Vlad is worried about being furloughed,

but it looks inevitable.

The company decided to furlough

workers while the business

wasn't operating.

After Mandy was furloughed, she decided

to devote her free time to painting.

This is The English We Speak from BBC

Learning English and we're

talking about the word 'furlough',

which describes when workers are

put on a leave of absence,

for example due to an economic

issue that a company is facing.

Yes, sadly, a lot of workers are being

furloughed at the moment due

to the coronavirus crisis.

It's different to being sacked

or made redundant, isn't it?

That's right - it's a temporary situation,

so workers stay on the payroll, but they're

not working.

Well, hopefully everyone will be able

to get back to their jobs soon

and not be furloughed

any more.

Yes, and next time I send you a voice

message you should listen more

carefully. You're so

silly, Roy.

Should I grow my beard back?

Definitely. It suits you.

Thanks for the advice - I will.

Bye, Roy.

Bye, Feifei.