The Iron Age 1914-01-29: Vol 93 Iss 5

aR | | | | | | | | Hi | {| = | Established 1855 New York, January 29, 1914 Vol. 93: No. 5 Curing an Isolated Village of Loneliness The Windsor Club, Established by the Windsor Machine for Its the Townspeople—Creating a Company, Employees and Pleasant Life BY JOHN NELCOC? [he Windsor Machine Company, Windsor, Vt., ployees and their families. stablished a club for its employees which is great natural beauty. ie in several respects among institutions of its the Connecticut River, nestling The chief purpose was to create a condition rugged hills, with Mt. Ascutney towering a few in a small town which would replace for skilled em miles away to give the final charm to the landscape, ployees and their families the sort of existence they the attraction is great from an aesthetic viewpoint. behind when But, to the they move from a city ee ars eee Re who was ac or a large town to a customed to the activ country village. The Windsor Club is a so- cial center, admirably equipped for its pur- Windsor is a place of Situated on the banks of between it and eave man or | woman ities and amusements of larger centers, existence sometimes pose, and its influ- already dem- onstrated in the few months of experience, is of vital importance to the future of the Windsor Machine Company and_ the ence, The club is the outcome of several years of planning. Three years ago, when the new plant was built, the manage- ment realized that in order to maintain a constantly asing and efficient working force life in the wn must be made as attractive as possible to em- town as a whole. The Old Machine Shop befo proved monotonous to which in duced serious discon tent and ultimate re moval to a a degree place of greater | The all theatre, excepting the population. village has no usual motion picture Convers ( H show. Until the club came into existence amusements were merely those of any rural com munity. The nearest city is a long way off—much too far to permit of frequent visiting. Unless it be neutralized, the inevitable result of isolation on persons accustomed to some measure of excitement 0 Windsor Club, established by the Windsor Machine Company 299 ‘s Employees and Their Fellow Townsmen 300 is easily compre- hended. In dull times, when men are hunt- ing for work, the small towns can get more help than they require, but when business is good, the skilled mechanics needed usually give preference to the more bustling com- munities. It has ever been found that married men who have accepted posi- tions in the works and taken up their abode in the village in advance of their families have hesi- tated to introduce their wives into an . ° The ‘environment which threatened an unac- customed monotony. As for the young men of the cities, from whom the skilled mechanics, and the draftsmen, and the more highly trained of an of- fice force are largely recruited, and also the young women, including the stenographers, the prospect of life in Windsor was not always alluring. The Gridley automatic machines require in their manufacture the highest form of mechanical labor. The Vermont villages and farms can be depended on for the contribution of a certain number of boys, who are trained to be among the best mechanics in the world. But many of them strike out for the cities, and not enough are left to go around among the several thriving machine shops located in the small towns of the state. The business of the Windsor Machine Company has grown very rapidly. The great works—as fine an example of a machine tool building establish- ment as there is in the world—were presumed to The Main Hall, Formerly the THE IRON Machine Shop AGE January 29, |5)4 Main Hall as it Used to Be care for any ordinary increase. The building now occupied to about the limit of its space, an the day of large extension is not far distant. The need is accentuated by the development of an in portant machine of an entirely new type, the Grid ley vertical automatic turret drilling machine, whic! has already gone on the market, and also by the fact that the development of the Gridley automatics continues to proceed in an important way. Five years ago about 100 men were required to operate the business. The capacity today demands 550 me! Naturally the Windsor Machine Company is con pelled to go to the cities for its people. It was decided to create a social life whicl would be attractive to every employee worth the keeping. The effort was directed especially with the purpose of satisfying the high-class man. The planning took several forms, until the managing of- ficers finally bethought themselves of the old plant, which had beer abandoned for several and seemed des- years, tined to pass into complete decay. The so- lution of the problem was found. The buildings were converted into a club house. George 0. Grid- ley, the genera! manager; Fran! L. Cone, the su- perintendent, and the [ate Maxwell Evarts, gave their en- thusiastic inter- est to the work The building lent itself ad- mirably to the new purpose The location 15 excellent, on the main street o! ory 1914 Ja ry The Sporting Center of the W illage and yet only a few minutes’ walk from hops. There seems to be ample room; about 0,000 sq. ft. of floor space is occupied. The power that formerly had operated the company’s ma- nery, and heated and lighted the works, was in excellent condition. The expense of building was onfined to the erection of a piazza encircling the front and a narrow addition which widens the mid- way section of the structure, and to certain interior structural changes and the general renovation. On top of this was the cost of equipment and furnish- ngs. The total outlay in cash was not great con- sidering the results which already have been ob- tained and which promise to become very much rreater. The real estate existed on the books as ntinuous expense, for no returns were received, r did the likelihood exist of any improvement in respect. Already the institution has become practically self-supporting, including in the invest- ent the mill property. The ib itself is pay- i ng every ex- oom pense. The res- — taurant, which is perated as a sep- rate department, till running a behind. The financial le of the under- ng presents nteresting The com- naturally | like to have lub self-sus- g, but the rement real- very clearly ++ the indirect ial benefit e large— large. The is intended nd is used if-respecting and, in the rant, by THE IRON AGE 301 women of the high class found so tre- quently in the oitices of New England man- ufacturers. These people are of the sort who want to pay their way. ry to give them something for nothing and they re sent it. A few of the skilled employees might seize chance with greedi but in a great majority of cases per such as~- they would eventually prove themselves use less or untrustworthy as workmen. Every employee of the Windsor Machine Company is eligible Club for membership in the club. So, also, is resident of the town. He signs the constitution and pays the annual dues of the ness, sons every respectable male $5. The employee can have no feeling that the Windsor Machine Company is treating him to some sort of paternalism. He has the rights in the club as Mr. Gridley or Mr. Cone, or any prom inent business man of the village. The constitu tion and by-laws are worded simply, with few rules Same beyond the plain statement that a member may be expelled by vote of the club for any action that might be translated into the military phrase “con duct unbecoming a gentleman.” In the six months of the club’s existence, during which time 500 men have been enrolled as members, no cause of com plaint has arisen, not even in one instance. This statement may seem unnecessary, but the manufac turer who may consider the adoption of the club idea may get from the frank expression some no- tion of the influence of such an institution. It The Club Dining Room 302 leads toward decent broad of the word. The conveniences of the club include practically everything that would call a man out of a boarding house in the evening. Tobacco in all forms is sold in the office and in the main hall. The member has his billiards or pool or bowling at a price much less than that commonly charged in public places. The bath, unless he has a room, costs him 10 cents, in- cluding towels and soap. There is a public tele- phone station. He may have his game of cards for fun. The men who live at the club are restricted in no way as to their hours. The office is open at night until 12 o’clock, and if a member wishes to be out later he is furnished with a pass key. The power plant operates all night so that light is al- living in a very sense The Club Kitchen, To those who live elsewhere, the bachelors who cannot be given none are available, the visit to the club affords the same broad privileges. The club charges $4.50 per week for table board and $2 a week fora room. This is a little more than a workman needs to pay in Windsor,’ but it is no greater than the high-class employee of the shop is willing to give for much inferior fare and a much less attractive room. The Windsor Machine Com- pany, as has been stated, is not attempting to cater to the poorer class of help. The first rate man is the type who is hard to keep and the club is in- tended primarily for him. -The food served in the club restaurant is exceedingly good, with plenty of variety, and the service is excellent. The well- trained waitresses are neatly uniformed. The table linen is immaculate and the china and silver are at- tractive. A spotless neatness prevails everywhere. The club house may be considered as consist- ing of three sections—the front, which is of com- paratively recent construction; the rear, which was built in 1908, and which was the main machine shop, and the central section, the history of which dates back many vears. The dining room, which occu- ways to be had. married men or rooms, becauss THE IRON Modern in Every Detail AGE January 29, pies most of this part of the building, was fo the home of one of the oldest firearms conce, America, which years ago employed many m: One of the most impressive features of th house is its cheerfulness. The rooms are lit: flooded with light. ‘lhe capacity of the power is so great that electricity and heat are used prodigal lavishness. The color scheme adds mu the genera! effect. Everything in the decorati: either white or of warm color tint. For example. the walls of the dining room, above the light-toned hardwood wainscoting, are paneled, a pleasant below and a yellow tint above, while the curt are of a dark bluish green, all blending into a bright and tasteful harmony of color. The office, at the front of the building, is fin nae oe : 3 ON *% ished in Southern pine. From the main entrance the visitor looks through into a living room, the windowed side of which is filled with potted plants, many of them in bloom. The long dining room opens from the office and seats 130 persons. Be- yond is the kitchen, modern in every detail, whic! tends toward hygiene and efficiency. A refrigerat ing plant keeps the storerooms at required tempera tures and manufactures ice. The laundry contains the very latest of machinery and other appliances, and here is done the washing for the shops as wel as for the club. No hotel of treble the size coul¢ be better equipped in its kitchen, laundry and frigerating plant. Extending along the side of the dining roon from the office is a lounging and writing room, and beyond, reached by a long passageway is the hall like room, in which are the bowling alleys, four 0! ; ‘ them, of the highest grade in construction an¢ equipment. This room may be termed the sporting center of the club. A bowling tournament, in which numbered teams are the contestants, progresses through the winter months. A blackboard gives full details of the results of major league baseba! games each evening of the season. Close by are t January 29, 1914 THE IRON AGE 308 shot baths which are used by a great many of the n. The Windsor Club supported an excellent | ll team last season. : great room formerly occupied by the ma- shop is the main hall. It is 50 x 100 ft., very tudded, and with a shallow monitor roof. The wall. and columns which mark off the two side bays inted, wainscot high, a rich red and a light or several feet above, while the entire upper f the hall is white. The lamps on the columns red globes, which combine with the brilliant y from the powerful lights above and on the walls to enhance the gay color effect at night. In the corners of this room are the pool and billiard ables—there are seven of them in the building. At one end of the hall are two large tables, filled with nagazines and technical journals and the daily papers, to which the club is a generous subscriber, and which are received promptly. There are a great many easy chairs; some 100 of them are oak rockers upholstered in leather, and in addition there are many chairs suitable for use at dances. The waxed hardwood floor provides a most satisfactory surface for dancing. Upstairs are the bedrooms, regularly tenanted by about 30 employees of the Windsor Machine Company. They are not very large, yet they have space enough so that two men can live together without crowding. In addition to two public bath- rooms on this floor, some of the rooms are arranged two en suite with private bath between, the cost of this additional luxury being a moderate advance upon the regular rates. Every room has its set bowl with running hot and cold water and steam heat. Two high-power ceiling lamps afford artificial illu- mination. All are outside rooms, each with two windows overlooking the village streets and the mountains beyond. The transom over the door combines with a fully ventilated corridor to insure the circulation of pure air. The furniture is plain, but very good. The contrast from conditions in the average boarding house is too great to require sug- gestion. In converting the building to its new purpose the Windsor Machine Company was not led into uny extravagance. Money was spent only where it seemed to promise results. Some degree of luxury was considered necessary for certain purposes. For example, the easy-chairs, which have been referred to, are by no means inexpensive. In the beginning two dozen of them were purchased, but they vere in such demand at the dances and were enjoyed much, especially by the older people of the vil- ige, that it was thought worth while to supplement em on a large scale. The various problems of arrangement and construction were studied out with the same painstaking care that is given to the tails of management of the company’s shops. For istration, the first thought was that it would be pedient to pipe the bedrooms for water, because the cost. A bowl and pitcher were considered good enough. But a study of the question sed a change in plans. The bowl and pitcher d be cheaper as an original investment, but nst this was placed the cost of labor of carry- ‘ water, the element of breakage, and the depre- on of property due to water leaking down on igs and walls. As a straight issue of cost it alculated that piping and set bowls would be eaper in the end. And naturally the greater com- and contentment which would ensue were no mportant factors in themselves. Vindsor is an old town, and in common with all New England villages of its type, is naturally con- tive socially. The club has already done a great deal in breaking down old prejudices. It brings together the men of the town in the club life. Perhaps 80 per cent. of the members are Windsor Machine Company men. The remainder are the substantial citizens who govern the profes- sional and mercantile interests of the community. They meet on equal footing and not infrequently. Everybody knows everyone else. The weekly dance held Wednesday evenings brings the women te the club. The main hall is al- ways crowded. Everything is wholly informal. The Windsor Machine Company boasts the best orches- tra in this part of Vermont, so the music is good. Some of the men play billiards, others bowl, and many enjoy the dancing. Smoking is permitted. Everybody in town is invited to the dances, and no charge is made for admittance, though those who dance pay a small fee for the privilege. Young men from the Windsor Machine Company have the op- portunity to meet the nice girls of Windsor, just as they have met the men on other evenings. The stranger finds his introduction into the social life of the village easy and pleasant. As a matter of fact, the club gives as great an opportunity for amusement as usually falls to the lot of the type of men included in its membership, no matter where they live. Something is going on most of the time to interest a wholesome-minded man. Monday, Thursday and Friday evenings are given up to bowling matches, which are largely at- tended, the rivalry between the teams for the cham pionship being very keen. With the dance Wednes- day night and the general gathering of members which naturally comes Saturdays, afternoons and evenings, not much time is left outside of working hours in which to become bored with country town life. Especially important is the effect of the club upon the men with families, who come from other places. The husband has the opportunity to be- come acquainted with many men and with the fam- ilies of some of them before he has established a home for the wife and children, and when they ar- rive in town, instead of experiencing the usual lone- liness of being among strangers, acquaintances and friendships are ready for the making. The influence of living at the club upon the young men is already apparent. A person working in a shop where his hands and face must be black- ened by oil and dust of metal is apt to become a little careless of his personal appearance. For cer- tain occasions he will make himself presentable, but in his everyday life he may be more or less slovenly. Such an accusation cannot be made against the me- chanics who live at the Windsor Club dining room. At noon there is little time for more than a super- ficial “dressing-up,” but at the evening meal they are up-to-the-minute in their attire. They would feel out of place otherwise. Incidentally one influ- ence to accomplish this condition is the presence in the dining room of young women employees of the company’s office who regularly take their meals there. The club has already outgrown its quarters so far as sleeping rooms are concerned, and the man- agement has prepared tentative plans which would give 100 chambers. Most of these would be taken by the employees. And the club has become the town hotel. When it was opened September 1, the newspaper correspondents and the secret service men who were waiting upon President Wilson at the summer capital in the nearby town of Cornish, gladly sought the new hostelry and were highly pleased with the comforts that were accorded them. Traveling men are put up if there is room for them, fren a ne i ae, 304 THE IRON AGE and if no sleeping room is vacant the restaurant serves them well, for the food is really worth while. When the warm weather comes automobile parties will be cared for—many of them pass through the village on their way through the beautiful valley. The hotel side of the proposition has its place in accomplishing the chief purpose aimed at, to make pleasant the social life of the town. The stranger within the gates adds to the variety of ex- istence. The resident of a great city likes to come in contact with people from other places, even though he may not have a chance actually to meet them. In a small town this privilege is appreciated even more highly. A touch of the cosmopolitan is good for everyone. Proposed Standard Sizes of Catalogues A Movement to Secure Uniformity in Advertis- ing Matter BY ARTHUR HALLER* Most catalogues at the present day are valuable and are supplied to a carefully selected list of men to whom their contents will be of practical assist- \ Selection of Catalogues Made at Random from the Cata- logue File of a Prominent Trade Journal ance. In the mechanical field particularly a great reliance is placed on the file of catalogues main- tained, which in effect becomes a reference library. In full recognition of this condition many of the larger firms have their high salaried engineers de- vote considerable time to providing valuable infor- mation in a lasting form. An attractive booklet reaching the desk of the general manager or pur- chasing official is much appreciated and after exami- nation is placed on file. The files of a busy man are carefully maintained and arranged for prompt reference. If the attrac- tive catalogue of the manufacturer is of the size generally favored, its filing is a matter of routine and a place is ready to receive it. If, however, it is larger than the other books in the file, there is no specified place that it will fit and the chances of its being thrown away are greatly increased. It may be thrown into a pile with similar odds and ends where it soon becomes frayed and is destroyed at the next cleaning up. When one considers the multiplicity of sizes of catalogues in use today, the advantage of a stand- ard size is at once demonstrated. A committee ap- pointed by the Technical Publicity Association to investigate and recommend standard sizes for cata- logues, recently measured 927 catalogues and found *Secretary, Technical Publicity Association, New York City January 29, 1914 147 different sizes, ranging from 3 x 5 to 1l x in. An example of the varied number of siz: presented in the accompanying reproduction photograph of a selection made at random fr: large catalogue file. A 2-ft. rule in the center s; to show the relative size. An argument advanced against uniform siz: catalogues is that individuality would be sacrifice if all catalogues were uniform. A freak size doe not tend toward individuality, but lessens the chance of the catalogue being retained by the recipient. [+ individuality is desired this can be provided on the inside pages and the cover. A catalogue is not for the purpose of exhibiting the individuality of +} house publishing it, but to give such information to customers as will be most useful to them. This matter has been under investigation by the committee of the Technical Publicity Association for the past 18 months, and its investigations have led to the recommendation of 6 x 9 and 81% x 11 in. for standards for all purposes. Both of these sizes will cut to good advantage with a minimum of waste from catalogue papers now carried in stock by paper manufacturers. Another advantage of the larger size is that catalogues of these dimensions can conveniently be filed with correspondence, as this size will fit standard filing cabinets very nicely. For paper bound catalogues, the cover should be trimmed to the exact size of the inside pages. Deckel edges and overlapping edges make catalogues less convenient to handle and should be discouraged. For catalogues with stiff covers the inside pages should be trimmed to the sizes recommended with a \g-in. overlap. This committee also recommended 8 x 101% in. for bulletins, and this was accepted by the Technical Publicity Association, at its meeting on October 9, 1913, because a large number of com- panies are now using a letterhead of this size and because bulletins frequently accompany letters and are filed with correspondence. This size is also the one that has been recommended by the Master Car Builders’ Association as a standard for catalogues. The report of the Technical Publicity Associ- ation is the same as the reports of similar commit- tees appointed by the American Society of Mechan- ical Engineers and the American Institute of Archi- tects except that these committees recommended the 81% x 11 in. size for both bulletins and catalogues. It is to be hoped that all manufacturers will appre- ciate the importance of this subject and for the benefit of their present and prospective customers will adopt these standards for all future catalogues and bulletins. Copper Statistics Henry R. Merton & Co., Ltd., London, England, have issued two sheets bearing on copper statistics. One of these gives the production of copper in 1913 by months in the United States, with the American con sumption and shipments, shipments to Europe from Chile and other countries, together with the monthl) figures of American stocks and of the combined visible supplies in Europe and America, closing with the average monthly price of standard copper in Londo! The second sheet is a graphic representation of fluctua- tions in visible supplies of copper and in values o! standard copper in London, by months, for 1911 to 1913, inclusive. A feature of this chart is the fact that the curve of visible supplies descends with an increas in stocks and ascends with a decrease. In this manne! the fluctuations in prices are shown to correspond close! with the fluctuations in supplies. The American Anti-Boycott Association will give 't* annual dinner at the Waldorf-Astoria, New York, Tues day evening, February 3. Januiry 29, 1914 THE IRON AGE 305 A |ieavy Duty Radial Drilling Machine Fosdick Machine Tool Company, Cincinnati, has placed on the market a 3-ft. heavy duty umn radial drilling machine. It is adapted great variation in work and it is possible to drills ranging from 5/16-in. carbon to 3-in. peed types as the necessary feeds and speeds ailable. One of the features of the machine ise of a box section column and a pipe and ection arm. To enable the correct feeds eeds to be obtained quickly, a metal speed ed plate is conveniently attached to the For heavy drilling or tapping in steel, channel is cast around the base, which into a large reservoir under the column, a pump and piping may be attached. For naller drilling and tapping operations, a has been provided for the table, which | to one corner where a receptacle for the ant may be placed, thus avoiding the use | imp and special return piping. There are hanges of feed, ranging from 0.007 to | in. per revolution of the spindle, which are ade by a single lever without stopping. The | box is placed low on the head, an arrange- nent which is relied upon to give support to both sides of the feed worm. The speed box provides hanges with a single lever, which is secured i latch to prevent chatter- g on the heaviest work. An wvertake arrangement is re- lied upon to avoid shock while thanges are being made by keeping the machine running at a reduced speed. The speeds of the spindle vary from 25 to 400 r.p.m. The column is a _ heavy ne-piece box casting, rein- forced by internal ribbing, ind the arm is of pipe and eam section. It is empha- ized that this construction enables a long saddle bearing be gibbed securely to the , now Heavy de, flat face of the column. special ball bearing sup- rts the arm, an arrangement which reduces the rt and time required to swing the arm from one on to another. The elevating screw, which and lowers the arm, is suspended from a ball ng and the handle is placed below for the con- ence of the operator. Safety trips for both nes of arm travel are provided. The head adjustment on the arm of 231, in., while the al traverse of the arm is 241% in. of the gears are incased to give protection. djustable-speed motor, with a range of 3 to 1 e used, these motors to develop 3 to 5 hp. and ted by rawhide gearing. Although the ma- s termed a 3-ft. radial drilling machine, the um distance from the spindle to the column base is 39 in. and between the spindle and the maximum distance is 52 in. The net s 4200 Ib. ssa el +} development of dynamic braking for coal and dling machinery was outlined in a paper pre- ’ Clark T. Henderson, electrical and mechan- neer Cutler-Hammer Mfg. Company, at the meeting of the American Society of Mechanical ers in December. The advantages and limita- ' this method are discussed, together with the tion of automatic control methods for limiting e speeds in lowering. Duty Box Gas Without Coke Attempts to turn practically the whole of every ton of coal into gas are being realized in Vienna, Austria, where Dr. Strache appears to have gone some distance toward a partial solution of the prob lem. His process has advanced beyond the experi mental stage, and one or two plants are now actually in operation. According to the London Times, “the system embodies the complete gasification of the atl Column Radial Drilling Machine Designed to Handk Great Variety of Work coal and coke in one operation, thus avoiding the dual plant and two distinct processes of making coal gas and water gas found in gas works today. In stead of first carbonizing the coal, discharging the coke, and then conveying it to the water gas plant, the coal is completely gasified in a special producer somewhat similar to a blast furnace. In conse quence, .the thermal losses are reduced to a mini mum. The low grade gas obtained during the ‘blow’ is employed for carbonizing the top layers which consist of coal. The heat is applied externally and the coke produced tumbles direct into the lower producer. The coal gas coming away from the pro ducer is ingeniously separated from the producer gas, and when the generator has reached a sufficient temperature the contents are steamed, and the re sulting water gas is passed through the coal at the top, which accordingly undergoes complete carboni zation. The gas obtained is, of course, inferior to that sent out for consumption in this country, and has an average calorific value of 375 B.t.u. per cu. ft The approximate price it commands on the Conti nent is said to be 1s. 5d. per 1000 cu. ft., and as the vield of sulphate of ammonia is about 32 lb. per ton of coal gasified, and benzol is also plentiful, the process should prove remunerative in those district where it can be used.” * wee ae a ae eet 2 es ee - cee Re BS See Soe <etet! O : ee The man so situated in his business relations that obligations to associates and stockholders do not command him, regardless of his own desires, is the rare exception. Such a man is Henry Ford. The Ford Motor Company has comparatively few other stockholders. They own collectively a minority in- terest. To most of them the epochal prosperity of this company has returned unearned increment. Henry,Ford personally has never had a more than incidental interest in the accumulation of money. For him the business has offered more absorbing problems. Schooled in the atmosphere of the shop, Appreciation of Mr. Ford by the Autho) the thought of sharing the profits that ha piling up may be accepted as a natural developmen: and unquestionably has long been in his mi: As for his associates in the Ford Motor Company wh, in the past have been more mindful of financia! mat. ters it may be suggested that they now find the humanitarian viewpoint agreeable and one t: cepted with interest. But the idea of a $5 minimum wage anid th, actual inauguration of a profit sharing plan were impromptu. One may even say that minimum was Mr. Ford’s idea by adoption. Inspjrs. The Ford Plan for Employees’ Betterment The Ford Motor Company’s 125 Per Cent. Pay-Roll Increase Involving Perhaps $15,000,000 and What the Employees Are Expected to Do With It What have been considered the essential features of the Ford profit sharing plan, placed in operation January 12, have already obtained wide publicity. To the average man of business who finds himself each succeeding year under the necessity for prac- tising additional economies to maintain the cur- rent rate of profit, the plan as reported has seemed so incredible that we shall set down, as follows, what it is proposed to do. 1. The proposition does not provide for any change in the scale of wages, but rather, the addi- tion of a share in the profits to each man’s present wage. The general scheme for classifying all of the labor employed, as described in The Jron Age of January 1, is retained as the fundamental! basis for rating the men now employed and those to be hired. The company makes it very clear that the amount to be given the men, according to the announcement recently made, covers the period of 1914, only, and is subject to such fluctuation after 1914, as the profits of the company may dictate. 2. In 1914, there will be added to the present daily wage of every man eligible under the plan and now earning up to 38 cents per hour, an amount such that the daily remuneration in each case will be $5. To the wage of every eligible employee now earning between 38 cents and 48 cents per hour, there will be added an amount sufficient to make his daily return $6. To the wage of every eligible man now earning from 48 cents to 54 cents per hour, a share of the profits will be added sufficient to bring the day’s remuneration up to $7. EMPLOYEES GROUPED IN FOUR CLASSES » 3. As applied to the salary pay-roll a division into four classes is made. First: $200 a month, and over. Second: Men over 22 years of age now earning less than $175 per month. Third: Men under 22 vears of age and women. Fourth: Salesmen. Of the men included in these divisions, the first class is unaffected. The annual bonus system through which the company rewards its higher sal- aried men for special services during the year con- tinues applicable to them. In the second class those earning $100 a month will now receive a minimum of $5 a day. Those now receiving from $101 to $135 a month will under the 306 plan receive $6 a day. Those whose salaries rang: from $136 to $175 will receive $7 a day. In the third class, a salary of $30 a month will entitle the employee to $2 a day; $40 a month, $2.50 per day; $50 a month, $3 per day; $60 a month, $3.50 per day; $75 a month, $4 per day, and over $75, $4.5 per day. Salesmen under the fourth class will b¢ entitled to a minimum of $5 per day. 4. Employees eligible under the profit sharing plan include all men over 22 years of age who satis- factorily pass the company’s requirements with re spect to personal record. The plan also includes al! male employees under 22 years of age upon whon a near relative is dependent for support. The same is true for the women in the employ of the com pany who are the support of near relatives. For all others, the wage and salary scale in effect before the inauguration of this plan continues in force. 5. In place of two shifts of 9 hr. each, the con pany has inaugurated the continuous operation oi the plant on the basis of three 8-hr. shifts. This change-over has not yet been completed for all de- partments of the plant, but will be as soon as pos- sible. The provisions of the profit-sharing plar apply to the 8-hr. period only. Overtime, when necessary, will be paid for at 114 times the previous rate. 6. The Ford Motor Company does not wish t change the present standard of labor employed in its plant Three-quarters of the employees are 0! foreign birth; a large number of them non-English speaking and of the grade ordinarily fitted for com mon labor. In the Ford plant they have been trained to a high grade of skill—each for a particular oper- ation. The increment added to wages under the plan will not result therefore in the attraction of 4 higher grade of workmen and their substitution for the class at present employed. 7. Whenever possible, and the process is con- tinuous, the company shifts a man from one oper- ation, when he has acquired considerable skill, to some other operation. Every such move represents an advance in the organization and constitutes pro- gression on the basis of the skill-wage plan prev!- ously referred to. In accordance with the same plan, when a man fails to make satisfactory im- provement he is given an opportunity to make g00¢ in some other department and on the basis of effi- ciency alone is discharged only as a last resort. aes EE O. J. Abell, Western Editor, The Iron Age: e plan arose from the question “How can . our present operation so as to give em- vn to more of the idle men of Detroit?” Con- eached so quickly as to have the appear- mpulse, are characteristic of this man. execution follows with equal speed and the of successful completion may not be ques- Consistently, this has been the history of business, the development of which he ed. cember 31, the suggestion for shortening schedule so that more men might be e o 4 - ‘EE SHIFTS TO PROVIDE WORK FOR MORE MEN The adoption of a shorter working period ng it possible to hire more men was entirely r the benefit of men without other employment. nvestigation of each applicant covers the mat- f his previous employment, and the idle men of troit are given preference over those without ployment from other localities who make appli- n. It is not possible for a man to secure a sition who, having employment in another fac- ry, leaves his job for the purpose of securing one the Ford plant. The Ford Motor Company has farthest from its intention the expectation of draw- ng upon the organizations of rival manufacturers. It is inevitable, however, that many concerns who are now operating at a low rate will find upon a return to more heavy operations, some of their em- loyees who were laid off, in the employ of the Ford Company. DETAILED RECORDS OF THE EMPLOYEES 9. The company has organized a corps of in- estigators nearly 100 in number, each supplied vith the services of an interpreter and with an auto- bile at his disposal. These investigators are for most part physicians who have been associated th the company’s medical staff; others of the in- tigators are among the oldest and most trusted ovees of this company. This corps of investi- rs requires of each present employee, and each plicant for a position, the following information: Full name; address; age; whether married or e; the number of children and their ages; the er of children attending school; the number of dren working; the number of people dependent ; concerning the home, covering the rent paid; ther or not the home is owned; its value, wheth- free from encumbrance, and what balance, , is still owed. Concerning other assets, infor- tion is required, as to the savings account; where ted, and if possible, the pass book number; real te, life insurance and miscellaneous. ach individual is required to submit to a physi- examination; complete data as to habits and tendencies are secured; the kinds of recre- to which the individual is given are also dis- ‘ed, and the above, with whatever general in- ation the investigator may secure bearing upon veneral character of the employee, are tabulated report which becomes a permanent file. If the rm ation as first obtained is verified by personal ‘tigation, which investigation carried on igh the channels of the tradesmen, landlords anks of the city, and is of such quality as to the man either obviously good or bad, the rt is acted upon on the strength of the investi- r’s report. The record of men of doubtful char- and habits is passed to a committee of five, on Mr. Ford himself acts. is uU 307 employed was made by Mr. Ford. There was then not even a plan, to say nothing of details. On Jan uary 12 the plan was placed in actual operation, affecting 16,000 men already employed and 4000 about to be hired. Twelve days—while the world is still wondering, the thing is done. This article simply a relation of fact and comment as they were found. is It does not present the writer’s opinions except in one respect—that this plan so novel as to be received with almost universal skepticism was inspired entirely by humane purposes lacks utterly a foundation in ulterior motives. and sees fHE DISPOSITION 10. The investigation and supervision outlined above is not to be a matter of form, but in fact, the really important part of the company’s programme. It is the very definite purpose of the company to make the distribution of this increment a construc tive measure. In addition to the money to be re quired for actual distribution in the pay envelopes, the company has committed itself to whatever ex penditure may be needed to bring about a proper disposition of the increment by the employees for their own real and substantial benefit. When re- quired because of their record the employees will be given to understand that a portion of the mone) must go toward a steady growth of savings ac- counts; that a portion must go toward the improve ment of living conditions, where those living condi tions, as in the case of most of the foreigners, ars decidedly objectionable. A portion must go toward the better education of children and the proper care of dependents. The company also will insist that the building and owning of homes be a logical de- velopment. OF THE INCREASE TO BE WATCHED The increased earnings are not expected to result in a corresponding increase of remittances to Europe, and an effort is to be directed toward the accumulation and investment of the funds in De- troit. 11. Over against the opportunity for securing continuously these exceptional earnings; in other words, the opportunity for holding employment with the Ford Motor Company, the company requires conformity with its general plan for the betterment of the employees. A very essential feature of company’s plan, however, lies in the fact that the company’s supervision is not to be obvious, but that the employees shall proceed to their self-improve ment on their own initiative. So long as the em ployee maintains the standards demanded, he will never be made conscious of supervision. tne ADVERSE CRITICISM OF THE PLAN Criticism of the Ford profit sharing plan as it has appeared in the comment both of manufacturers not directly competitors either as regards product or labor and of those manufacturers in Detroit, who, if any, will be directly affected, may reduced to three general ideas. The unwisdom of mortgaging the future of one’s business by the voluntary imposition of abnormally high labor cost. h. The establishment of this increased return to labor on the basis of an arbitrarily assumed minimum cost of living is certain to create discon- tent in the minds of the employees of other manu- facturers whose scale of wages is not so high, and will inevitably result in a higher cost of living for the employees. c. The inconsistencies of the Ford Motor Com- pany itself, as represented by its purchasing meth- be a. an i I. 308 THE IRON AGE ods in contrast with its lavish distribution of profits to its own employees. WAGE REDUCTION WITH A DECLINE IN PROFITS Concerning the first criticism: Mr. Ford believes that his employees are capable of understanding that the increment is a distribution of profits for the current year, and that they will accept a reduc- tion in that distribution if the company’s profits decline. Most manufacturers are unwilling to con- cede as much. As for the minimum of $5 being too large an amount for the labor performed, as com- pared with the scales established by the prevailing competitive market, it is the belief of the Ford Mo- tor Company that the production to which each em ployee contributes in its plant under the system in force is correspondingly as much in excess of the production per man elsewhere, as the Ford daily minimum is in excess of the corresponding wage elsewhere. It is also true that under the stimulus of the increased reward the production for the 8-hr. shift in practically all departments of the plant is as large, and in some cases larger than was the produc- tion for the 9-hr. period previously in force. It is maintained by the average manufacturer that however excellent any product, or however im- proved the methods employed in its manufacture, there is certain to come some other individual or organization capable of doing equally well. If, in addition, the newcomer can hire men at a consid- erably lower wage, the unique position of the first product is at once undermined, and the original manufacturer finds himself forced to reduce wages in order to compete, and in addition, has a dis- gruntled organization. That the average employee of today is not an especially reasonable being is already in evidence at the Ford plant, where, for example, certain of the employees who received 38 cents per hour and now receive $5 per day, feel that they are not being equitably treated, inasmuch as the man who was earning but 26 cents per hour is now also receiving $5, notwithstanding the fact that earnings have been greatly increased in each case, As regards the future it seems clear that for Mr. Ford, “Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof”; that as long as he has work to offer he will be able to secure men to work for him at the market price, and that if in the meantime he is able to do some- thing for them that will better their condition, so much of good will have been done for at least that period. THE IDEA OF THE MINIMUM WAGE The answer to the second criticism is necessarily somewhat speculative in character: “Scientific management” has its foundation in an exhaustive study of human performance. From this study de- terminations have been made of the amount of work a man should do in a day, working efficiently at various tasks. It has been maintained by some stu- dents of sociology that a similarly thorough study of the living conditions of the various classes of labor would result in a like knowledge of the average sum of money labor of the different classes requires for maintaining itself perfectly in its particular sphere of life. These students further argue that the minimum sum so determined is thus logically the natural reward to which the employee whose task is set is entitled for the labor he performs. This proposition parallels in a measure at least what is in Mr. Ford’s mind and it appears to be his hope that other manufacturers may so adjust their oper- ations as to approach some such equation of a fair day’s wage for a fair day’s work. January 29, i914 The extent to which discontent will devel has a number of limitations. Investigation in D i seems to ihdicate that among the men having «.:tjs. factory employment in other lines, the distribution of profits at the Ford plant is received in an jm. personal way and is classed as a unique situ comparable with the many other unique events the history of the Ford Motor Company. It should be noted that previous to January 12 the av wage at the Ford plant was considerably less the average wage at other automobile plants. THE COMPANY’S PURCHASES AT LOW PRICES The criticism leveled against the Ford Motor Company for its own inconsistencies reveals a very interesting policy on the part of that company. It is true that the Ford Motor Company has used its position as an exceptionally large buyer to secure the lowest possible prices in buying materials. It is also true that employees of some of the concerns which depend largely on their sales to the Ford Motor Company have suffered wage reductions os- tensibly because of the low prices at which their product was sold. It has been pointed out that the position of the Ford Company is a parallel to that of the rich man who in his business dealings amasses money by close dealing, which money he subsequently lavishes upon luxuries for his own family. This is not exactly the case. The Ford Company believes that the same methods which en- able it to earn the profits it has earned, can be em- ployed by those who furnish it material in corre- sponding quantity. The Ford Company proposes to lend its influence and assistance toward the instal- lation of similar methods in the plants of those man- ufacturers from whom it buys, so that the prices at which it buys will not work a hardship upon those employees any more than the sale of the Ford motor car at a price exceptionally low affects the wages of Ford employees. Where it is impossible to bring about these improvements in the methods of manu- facturing purchased materials, the Ford Motor Company proposes to extend its own operations to cover the manufacture of those materials and thus make available to the additional employees engaged, its profit sharing distribution. The relations of every right minded employer to his employees have in them something of paternal- ism. And it is more pronounced where the em- ployer inaugurates betterment plans of any kind for his employees. Paternalism is most objectionable when the initiative and self-reliance of the bene- ficiary are impaired. It is the belief of those who worked out the Ford plan that no satisfactory sub- stitute can be found for money, paid as the daily compensation for daily labor, in creating a satis- fied organization of workmen. It is intended that the employee’s initiative shall be unhampered ex- cept as it is guided only by helpful suggestion as long as he remains an employee. The company be- lieves that it is securing value received for every dollar put into the pay envelope, and it proposes that no occasion shall exist for any employee’s thinking he is not in the midst of an exacting competitive struggle for the position he holds. PROFITS 15 PER CENT. ON THE TURNOVER The immense sum of money for the distribution of which the Ford profit sharing plan provides, and the company’s own statement of the amount of money that has been accumulated in capital and surplus accounts have concentrated public attention upon the profits of this company’s business. With the granting of a 125 per cent. increase to labor, the criticism has arisen that the Ford Motor Company January 29, 1914 rgotten something of its obligation to the Instead of so prodigal a sharing of profits nployees a large majority of whom, because r ignorance, could have had no sense of co- on in the company’s success, it is claimed publie should have some of that profit in the lower prices. In reply to this it may be simply as a fact that the Ford profits have mited to 15 per cent. on the turnover each [t should be remembered also that the com- its announcement expresses the hope that continue its policy of