Prudential Fires 64 Sales Staff Over Money Fraud Case
Listen to the story
Prudential Life Insurance, a major insurance company in Japan, has punished 157 employees after a money fraud scandal.
The company found that some sales staff had taken money from customers through dishonest methods.
As a result, Prudential fired 64 sales employees who were involved in the fraud.
Another 68 employees received a work suspension, meaning they cannot work for a period of time.
Prudential held a press conference to explain the scandal to journalists and the public.
A former Prudential employee spoke about the situation to a news outlet. This person described some of the realities inside the company.
The former employee said some sales workers had large debts, including one case of three million yen.
The person also said that high income was not common for all staff, but only for a small number of workers.
The scandal has raised questions about how the company managed and supervised its sales team.
Prudential has not given full details about how the fraud happened or how long it continued.
Vocabulary10 words
- fraud
- taking money from someone in a dishonest way
- fired
- told to leave a job because of a problem
- suspension
- a period when a worker cannot do their job
- press conference
- a public meeting where a company answers questions from reporters
- journalists
- people who write or report news
- debts
- money that must be paid back
- income
- money a person earns from work
- scandal
- a bad event that becomes widely known and damages reputation
- supervised
- watched and controlled to make sure work is done correctly
- employees
- people who work for a company
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Quiz
Answer key
1. They were involved in fraud 2. They received a suspension 3. No, only for a small number of workers
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Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
Prudential Life Insurance, a major insurance company in Japan, has punished 157 employees after a money _____ scandal.
The company found that some sales staff had taken money from customers through dishonest methods.
As a result, Prudential _____ 64 sales employees who were involved in the fraud.
Another 68 employees received a work _____, meaning they cannot work for a period of time.
Prudential held a _____ to explain the scandal to journalists and the public.
A former Prudential employee spoke about the situation to a news outlet.
The former employee said some sales workers had large _____, including one case of three million yen.
The person also said that high _____ was not common for all staff, but only for a small number of workers.
The scandal has raised questions about how the company managed and _____ its sales team.
Prudential has not given full details about how the fraud happened or how long it continued.
Discussion questions
- Why do you think some employees chose to commit fraud at work?
- What should companies do to prevent fraud among their staff?
- Do you think firing employees is a fair punishment for fraud? Why or why not?
- How important is it for companies to hold press conferences during a scandal?
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