As far as I have seen it, also Americans have usually the pronoun 'they' when referring to a company, so it's a kind of plural, too.Moogey said:I think it can be either. I think it might even be different depending on where you are. For example, in AE we tend to put a singular verb after companies and in BE they tend to put a plural verb after it. I always put a singular verb after it because it's a collective noun--one entity--not plural.
-M
Unless of course of course your are talking about a single member of staff as in "...if a member of staff is absent.."panjandrum said:I was about to start explaining the BE tendency to vary according to context - but I really can't imagine hearing the staff is without feeling queasy (unless of course the staff in question is six feet tall, very thin, and made of wood).
Speaking about employees, I think staff is always plural.
Hakro said:As far as I have seen it, also Americans have usually the pronoun 'they' when referring to a company, so it's a kind of plural, too.
thankThank you!iI was confused about that, you made it clear!