Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Actively engaged in paid work: Describes a person who is currently performing their duties at their place of employment or during their scheduled work hours.
   • In operation or at work: Can describe machinery, systems, or processes that are currently functioning or being used for their intended purpose.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • The new safety manager spent her first week on the job observing the factory floor.
  • With so many employees on the job, the project was completed ahead of schedule.
  • The security cameras are on the job 24 hours a day.

Advanced Usage

• "to be on the job": To be actively working or fulfilling one's responsibilities.
  • As a nurse, you need to be fully focused when you're on the job.
• "to learn on the job": To acquire skills or knowledge through direct experience while working, rather than through formal training.
  • He didn't have a degree in marketing; he learned everything on the job.

Variants and Related Words

• On-the-job training (noun phrase): Training that is given to an employee at their workplace while they are doing the job.
  • The company provides extensive on-the-job training for all new hires.

Synonyms

• Working: Engaged in work.
• At work: Present and active in one's job.
• On duty: Officially scheduled to be working (common for security, medical, or military personnel).

Related Phrases

• Get on with the job: To start or continue doing the work that needs to be done.
  • Stop talking and get on with the job.
• Do a good/bad job: To perform a task well or poorly.
  • The contractors did a very good job on the renovations.

Related Idioms

• A hatchet job: A fierce verbal or written attack intended to severely criticize or damage someone's reputation.
  • The critic's review was a real hatchet job on the director's latest film.
• Job lot: A mixed group of articles bought or sold together.
  • He bought a job lot of old tools at the auction.

Adjective

1. actively engaged in paid work
   • the working population
   • the ratio of working men to unemployed
   • a working mother
   • robots can be on the job day and night