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golden parachute
golden parachute a contract given to top executives of a corporation to provide benefits in case of job loss due to a takeover by another firm or a merger. The unusually generous benefits may include substantial severance pay, a one-time bonus payment when employment ends, or stock options.
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bourse
bourse , term applied to a European stock exchange . The first international bourse was established in Antwerp in the 16th cent. The Paris bourse, dating from 1720 but completely reorganized in 1999, consists of the main exchange, equivalent to the New York Stock Exchange, plus the Matif (the deriv...
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commodity market
commodity market organized traders' exchange in which standardized, graded products are bought and sold. Worldwide, there are 48 major commodity exchanges that trade over 96 commodities, ranging from wheat and cotton to silver and oil. Most trading is done in futures contracts, that is, agreements ...
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merger
merger in corporate business, fusion of two or more corporations by the transfer of all property to a single corporation. The remaining corporation continues in existence, having absorbed the other(s). Mergers may be of various types: A vertical merger integrates different types of businesses tha...
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referendum
referendum referral of proposed laws or constitutional amendments to the electorate for final approval. This direct form of legislation, along with the initiative , was known in Greece and other early democracies. Today, these legislative devices are widely used in certain countries, most notably ...
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temporary worker
temporary worker an employee, hired through a specialized employment agency, who generally works less than a year on one assignment, regardless of the number of hours worked per week. Temporary workers (also called "contingency staffing" or "temps" ) are utilized to accommodate fluctuations ...
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social security
social security government program designed to provide for the basic economic security and welfare of individuals and their dependents. The programs classified under the term social security differ from one country to another, but all are the result of government legislation and all are designed to...
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Stabat Mater Dolorosa
Stabat Mater Dolorosa [Lat.,=the sorrowful mother was standing], 13th-century hymn of the Roman Church attributed to Jacopone da Todi. A prayer meditating on the sorrows of the Virgin Mary in her station at the Cross, it was the liturgical sequence for the Seven Sorrows of the Virgin (Sept. 15 and ...
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rummy
rummy card game played by two to six players with a standard deck. The cards usually rank from king down through ace. Seven cards are dealt to each player in the three- or four-hand game, one card is turned up on the table, and the remaining cards are left face down in a stock pile. Players, in ord...
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liberation theology
liberation theology belief that the Christian Gospel demands "a preferential option for the poor," and that the church should be involved in the struggle for economic and political justice in the contemporary world—particularly in the Third World. Dating to the Second Vatican Council (196...
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