was/were in broadcast writing

You may choose either and face an argument in either case.

You may choose either and face an argument in either case.

I don't disagree with the above statement, but only "was" seems correct to me.

'two-thirds of the workforce was'
'two thirds of the workers were'

(now waiting for the 'argument')

canadian45(now waiting for the 'argument')

YOU'RE COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY WRONG!

Blue JayActually, I would use were, although your argument for was is eminently logical. It may be a vestige of the British habit of treating a group as a plural that makes me want to use were. I wouldn't really argue about it, though.

Yes, I agree that this seems to come from the British habit of saying things like 'Manchester United were especially strong to

canadian45I wouldn't recommend learning English from the sports media.

Yes, a few months back a member was posting questions about reports of soccer matches. That was fun.