Final answer:
Using the Template Method Design Pattern, the Employee class's toString() method provides a consistent representation of the employee's information, leveraging the getSalary() abstract method overridden by subclasses to calculate the total salary.
Step-by-step explanation:
In the context of the Template Method Design Pattern, the Employee class's toString() method serves as a template, and subclasses can override certain steps without changing the structure of the algorithm. The Employee class would have a toString() method that consolidates information about the employee and leverages the getSalary() method to obtain the total salary.
The toString() method could look something like this:
public abstract class Employee {
private String name;
private double baseSalary;
// Other fields, constructors, and methods not shown
public abstract double getSalary(); // Subclasses will provide implementation
// Template Method
public String toString() {
return "Name: " + this.name + ", Base Salary: " + this.baseSalary + ", Total Salary: " + this.getSalary();
}
}
This pattern allows each subclass to define its own getSalary() method while ensuring that the representation of the employee's information is consistent.