transcription, транскрипция: [ ˈɡəuldən ]
adjective (Business World) In business jargon: involving the payment of a large sum of money or other gifts to an employee. Used in a number of phrases humorously modelled on golden handshake (a sum of money paid to an employee on retirement or redundancy), including: golden handcuffs, benefits provided by an employer to make it difficult or unattractive for the employee to leave and work elsewhere; golden hello, a substantial lump sum over and above the salary package, offered by a prospective employer to a senior executive as an inducement to accept a post; golden parachute, a clause in an executive's contract guaranteeing a substantial sum on termination of the contract, even if the employee has not performed well; golden retriever, a sum of money paid to a person who has already left an employer's staff in order to persuade him or her to return. Etymology: All of these phrases rely on the association of gold with riches; golden handcuffs, golden hello, and golden parachute consciously alter the earlier golden handshake, while golden retriever also relies for its humorous effect on the pun with the breed of dog of the same name. History and Usage: The phrase golden handshake dates from the early sixties, but it was not until the late seventies and eighties that the humorous variations on the theme started to be invented: golden handcuffs came first in the second half of the seventies, followed by the golden hello in the early eighties and the golden parachute and golden retriever in the late eighties. The theme of gold is continued in other areas of business and marketing in the eighties, for example in the expression golden bullet for a product that is extremely successful and golden share, a controlling interest in a company (especially one which has recently been privatized), allowing the golden shareholder (usually the government) to veto undesirable policies. Managers...have private health insurance, a better than average pension scheme, a car, and perhaps help with independent school fees from the company. These 'golden handcuffs' are a hangover from the days of labour shortages and income policies and higher tax rates. The Times 4 Apr. 1985, p. 30 It wasn't long before most of RJR Nabisco's top executives 'pulled the rip cords on their golden parachutes'...Mr. Johnson's alone was worth ø53 million. New York Times Book Review 21 Jan. 1990, p. 7 Hordes of graduate recruitment managers would appear on one's doorstep clambering and pushing to make the best golden hello/salary/benefits offer. World Outside: Career Guide 1990, p. 6