Compare how long people work against their legal holiday entitlement — Mexico works most, Germany least.
20 min·≥ 150 words·Practice prompt
The table below shows the average number of hours worked per worker per year and the minimum number of statutory paid leave days in five countries in 2019. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words.
OECD (hours worked); statutory leave from national labour law
How to crack it
A 4-step structure for the figure report
Read the axes twice.
Units, time span, and what's being measured. Misread the axis and the whole report is off.
Open with the overview.
The 1–2 biggest trends in one sentence — before any numbers.
Group the data, don't tour it.
Compare movers vs laggards. Describing each series in turn caps you at 6.
Quote exact values.
“Roughly a third” + the precise figure — data is your evidence. No opinions in Task 1.
What loses you the band
The four traps this question sets
No overview
One clear trends sentence is the biggest Task Achievement factor.
Touring every series
Group and compare — a line-by-line tour reads as a list, not a report.
Opinions or causes
Task 1 is report writing. No "because", no recommendations.
Copying the question
Paraphrase the rubric — copied wording doesn't count toward 150.
“An application letter for a part-time job at a local restaurant”
20 min · ≥150 words
“Some argue that companies should switch to a four-day working week. Do the advantages outw…”
40 min · ≥250 words
“More people are working from home rather than the office. Do the advantages outweigh the d…”
40 min · ≥250 words