PayDay

[rfitzpatrick]

When Henry went to $5 a day -- what did the other car manufactures bring their wages to? Or did they?

[Keith True]

Read about that $5.per day wage.It was NOT across the board.You were paid industry standard,$2.34 per day,and another $2.66 came from profit sharing.But,you had to be eligible.Over 21,employed there for over 3 months,and you had to meet Henry's lifestyle criteria.His social squads made the rounds checking out your home life.Dirty house or kids? wife still in her robe at 9:AM?any signs of alcohol or tobacco in the home?Keeping company with the wrong kind of people?Any and all were grounds to keep you at the base wage.And,to top it all off in 1914 over 70% of the line workers didn't speak english.They had to attend Ford run language classes,and the teachers were regular Ford employees.They were required to do it,and at no pay.Classes were after working hours.

[Marshall V. Daut]

Hmmm... Move to another country, bring your family, enjoy the benefits of a prosperous economy, carve out a better life than would have been possible in the hellhole you left and then have to learn your new country's language??? What a novel idea!!! The more things change, the more they stay the same.
Marshall

[Joe K]

Harry Bennett and Charles Sorensen might both find themselves in jail today.

Working for Ford was a "tough" way to make a living. Ford paid well but he demanded more.

Joe K

[Marshall V. Daut]

Yes, no question about it: working for Henry was no picnic. Human nature being what it is, it can only endure so much. I seem to recall reading about the Willow Run aircraft factory that Henry started in WWII (jokingly called "Willit Run" because of production delays). The work was monotonous and mind-numbing, besides physically demanding. Who wouldn't rebel at such demands, patriotic though one may be? The turn-over rate was so high that Ford had to hire three or four times the number of people remaining on the job just to stay operating. I understand that even with the $5.00 per day automobile factory pay in the Model T day, turn-over was still rampant. I take my hat off to anyone who could survive such a day-to-day grinding down in one of Henry's factories. At some point, money doesn't off-set the wear and tear on the human body and soul.
Marshall

[ModelA29]

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Originally Posted by Joe K

Working for Ford was a "tough" way to make a living. Ford paid well but he demanded more.

It continues today. A couple years ago they added Performance Enhancement goals to salaried workers.

What it boiled down to is that the overtime exempt white collar workers were expected to give 60-70 hours a week to the company to keep their jobs. Those that only worked 41-59 hours were offered a Performance Improvement program.If they didn't put in more FREE hours they were the first to go.

[ronn]

Most other car manufacturers paid 2.50 an hour, including Packard.
Henry disrupted the industry and this allowed the workers to start buying their own model Ts.
Henry didnt just mass produce the car- he set new standards for the American worker.

[Bob Bidonde]

Working on the assembly lines in the 1930s must have been a very unpleasant experience, so much so it gave rise to the AFL & CIO labor unions. I have read stories where the assembly line speed was increased to near impossible working conditions. There were gangsters under Harry Bennett to deal with. The company took advantage of the desperation of the work force in the Depression years.

[Keith True]

The problem with the language classes wasn't with the learners,it was with the instructors.the learners loved it.It enabled them to function in their new world,no matter where they went.The problem was that Henry required english speaking employees to do the teaching,after work hours,at no pay.They used what was called,The Berlitz Method,but I have no idea what that is.At Henry's directive John Lee had worked out a pay system according to skills,seniority,and a few other things.Then one day in 1913 Henry declared the $5.wage,and scrapped John's months of work.In 13 Fords turnover rate was 380%.They had to hire 963 men to keep 100.

[old31]

The Berlitz Method is an immersive teaching method for learning new languages. It was invented by Maximilian Berlitz and has been used since 1878. The core tenets of the

Berlitz Method include:

Focus on Communication: Grammar is secondary to spoken communication.
Immersive Environment: The target language is the primary language used in the classroom.

Native-Speaking Instructors: Berlitz emphasizes instruction by native speakers.
Customized Learning: Lessons are tailored to individual needs and goals.

How the Berlitz Method developed

Like many great discoveries, the Berlitz Method came about because of chance, specific circumstances, and a creative mind. While teaching in Providence, Maximilian Berlitz hired Joly, a young Frenchman as his assistant. However, upon Joly’s arrival in the U.S., Berlitz found out that his new assistant did not speak a single word of English.

During this time, Berlitz fell very ill and had no choice but to let Joly take over his teaching duties. Berlitz instructed Joly to use gestures to act out his meaning, encouraging him to use vocabulary in context so his French students could begin to understand the meaning.

After six weeks, Berlitz returned to the classroom expecting his students to be far behind in their language development. Instead, to his surprise, his students were more engaged than ever, communicating in an animated exchange of questions and answers – in perfect French!

Having been forced to learn from a French-only speaker accelerated their learning. As a result, a completely new and highly effective method of teaching was created.

[rfitzpatrick]

Are you guys suggesting Henry Ford might be in Jail if today, he ran it like 1930? This was quite a turn-over employee base. Wasn't he admired?

[Keith True]

I don't know if he would go to jail,but his methods would not fly today.How would your wife react to somebody knocking on her door today,while you're at work,to inspect your home?The social squads had three to a crew.A driver,the social worker,and an interpreter for the language of the neighborhood they were in.Of all the books I have read about it the number of squads ranged from 20 to 100.The most common number seemed to be around 50.Henry had an almost cult-like following,(really the whole country)with an almost mythological standing and reverence.He got rich off the little guy,by giving them a good product and not robbing them while doing it.

[old31]

I always thought highly of Henry. But after hearing about his pay practices and demands I think he is cruel, mean and not a nice guy.

I now have a lot more respect for his workers than I did before.

[Keith True]

There have been a lot of books written about Henry,and I have read quite a few of them in the last 50 years or so.While some of the stories seem to be really out there,if I see the same stories repeated in a half dozen accounts I tend to believe those stories.One book I read has his womanizing stretched out enough to be it's own supermarket tabloid.

[Joe K]

How would your wife react to somebody knocking on her door today,while you're at work,to inspect your home.

It was also a different age. And Henry had his origins in an even earlier age.

To Henry, to "look after" his employees meant EXACTLY THAT. He look a Christian outlook upon them, almost "fatherly" - and if you did what Dad wanted, you were rewarded.

And with that came the "nose to the grindstone", life is short and you have to use it to yours and others best advantage. And you respond with your "agency", and you live an austere life because "flash & fancy" were not as important as the relationships you maintained with your fellows. Life is a lifeboat and we all depend on each other ideal.

Of course bringing a Christian outlook to a Jewish household (or other sect) might be considered a "bit much" then as now. But Henry considered his employees "worth looking after." Albeit, while at work they survived by their wits.

"Industrial Paternalism" is what the 1950s termed the phrase. If you were "in" - you were IN.

The Japanese did exactly the same thing in the 1960s. By the 1960s in the US, Industrial Paternalism took opposite side of the table from Unionism, or got set aside entirely - although in reality both sought the same thing - a better quality of worker/family life.

Just how you get it was how they differed.

Joe K

[JoeCB]

A little personal insight on the subject.... Both of my grandfathers worked for Ford starting in the early 1920's at Highland Park, later at the Rouge. Both emigrated from Malta and had the advantage of some English proficiency, Malta being part of the British empire. As was common with foreigners and blacks, new hires started in the worst jobs, like the foundry. Grandpa told of hot steel in your face and snow blowing against you back side. Both were thankful for a good paying job. Keep your head down and work hard, that was the idea. Support your family. Save money, frugal living. Fortunately for my two grandfathers they both succeeded in eventually escaping the factory drudgery and got "promoted" to custodial work by the time of their retirement. Paternal g'pa George finished his Ford career as a second shift executive office janitor at the old Lincoln - Mercury Administration building in Dearborn across the street from the Rotunda. Both were thankful for the work that "Henry" afforded them. And they were pretty successful, even by today's standards, having raised families in homes they owned.. a new Ford car every few years and in both cases even small summer cottages on the lake. Not too bad for single income families. I think that life story is out of reach for many working folks today.

Joe B

[Ray in La Mesa]

Thanks for the history JoeCB. How many millions had a successful career at Ford?

[Bob-A]

[QUOTE=old31;2365046]I always thought highly of Henry. But after hearing about his pay practices and demands I think he is cruel, mean and not a nice guy.

Henry was also well liked by Adolf Hitler and was awarded a medal by the Nazi's. I believe I read that Hitler kept a portrait of Henry in his Munich, Germany apartment.


Bob-A