stop-work: meaning, definition, pronunciation and examples
C1Formal, Industrial, Journalistic
Quick answer
What does “stop-work” mean?
A temporary cessation of labour by employees, typically as a form of protest or due to a safety concern, organised by workers themselves rather than by a formal union directive.
Audio
Pronunciation
Definition
Meaning and Definition
A temporary cessation of labour by employees, typically as a form of protest or due to a safety concern, organised by workers themselves rather than by a formal union directive.
Any organised, spontaneous work stoppage; can refer to a protest action or a mandated pause for safety inspections or emergency drills.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
More common in British, Commonwealth, and International English (e.g., Australia, South Africa). In American English, 'work stoppage' or 'wildcat strike' are more frequent, though 'stop-work' is understood in industrial contexts.
Connotations
In UK/AU contexts, it can be a formal term in employment contracts or safety regulations. In the US, it may sound slightly foreign or technical.
Frequency
Low-frequency overall, but stable in specific domains like labour reporting, mining, construction, and heavy industry.
Grammar
How to Use “stop-work” in a Sentence
The union called a stop-work over safety standards.Workers voted to hold a stop-work.Management declared a stop-work for the safety audit.Vocabulary
Collocations
Examples
Examples of “stop-work” in a Sentence
verb
British English
- The crew can stop work if they deem the conditions unsafe.
- We will stop work at noon for the meeting.
American English
- The team stopped work due to the fire alarm.
- Contractors have the right to stop work under OSHA regulations.
adjective
British English
- A stop-work order was issued by the safety representative.
- They held a stop-work meeting in the canteen.
American English
- The stop-work authority is granted to every employee. (Technical/Industrial)
- This triggered a stop-work protocol.
Usage
Meaning in Context
Business
Used in HR and industrial relations reports to describe unauthorised stoppages.
Academic
Appears in sociology, labour economics, and industrial relations papers.
Everyday
Rare in casual conversation unless discussing news about industrial disputes.
Technical
Common in occupational health and safety (OHS) manuals, construction site protocols, and mining regulations.
Vocabulary
Synonyms of “stop-work”
Strong
Neutral
Vocabulary
Antonyms of “stop-work”
Watch out
Common Mistakes When Using “stop-work”
- Using 'stop-work' as a verb (e.g., 'They stop-worked yesterday' – incorrect; correct: 'They stopped work' or 'They held a stop-work').
- Confusing it with 'laid off' or 'furloughed', which are management-initiated, not worker-initiated.
- Spelling as one word 'stopwork'.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
No. A 'stop-work' is a complete cessation of work. A 'go-slow' (or 'work-to-rule') is a deliberate reduction in productivity or working strictly to contractual terms without stopping.
Yes, but it's less common. Management might declare a 'stop-work' for a company-wide safety briefing or due to an emergency. Typically, the term implies worker-led action.
'Stop work' describes the action (e.g., 'We must stop work now'). The hyphenated noun 'stop-work' refers to the event or instance itself (e.g., 'We are holding a stop-work').
It's possible but less common. It is most strongly associated with manual labour, industrial, construction, and mining contexts where safety is a immediate physical concern.
A temporary cessation of labour by employees, typically as a form of protest or due to a safety concern, organised by workers themselves rather than by a formal union directive.
Stop-work is usually formal, industrial, journalistic in register.
Stop-work: in British English it is pronounced /ˈstɒp wɜːk/, and in American English it is pronounced /ˈstɑːp wɜːrk/. Tap the audio buttons above to hear it.
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “Down tools (UK/AU equivalent for spontaneous action)”
- “Walk off the job”
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Imagine a large red button on a factory machine labelled 'STOP WORK' – workers press it together to halt everything.
Conceptual Metaphor
WORK IS MACHINERY / A stop-work is an emergency brake pulled by the workers.
Practice
Quiz
What is a key distinguishing feature of a 'stop-work' compared to a formal strike?