1/5/1914

[roccaas]

Ford's $5 wage goes into effect. Per Hemmings.

[CarlG]

My first "real" job out of college was $3.10/hr working for Boeing in Seattle - 707 / 727 days!

[2935ford]

or how about a pot washing job at a fancy restaurant for 3.12/hr!

[WTSHNN]

Originally Posted by Jeff/Illinois

I wonder how much that is, in today's money? It was a lot back then.

What cost $5 in 1914 would cost $107.49 in 2010.
Also, if you were to buy exactly the same products in 2010 and 1914,
they would cost you $5 and $0.23 respectively.

http://www.westegg.com/inflation/

-Tim

[Ron in Quincy]

I believe the $ 5.00 wage was for a whole days work ?

My dad lost the ranch in 1933 in Turlock, CA, his first job was feeding hogs for .25cents an hour ; he finally landed a job at Borden's Milk Plant in Modesto, CA that paid .37cents an hour and thought he had gone to heaven.

I use to go to the movies on Saturday morning, the cost was .05cents.

My Modesto Bee paper route paid $7.00 a month, there was no Saturday paper in those days. Prior to the paper route I sold papers on the street, they sold for .05cents and I got to keep 50 percent of what I sold.

Ron

[RcT]

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Originally Posted by Jeff/Illinois

I wonder how much that is, in today's money? It was a lot back then.

But then, I'm old enough to remember (about 1970 or so) that if somebody was making $5 per hour it was BIG BIG money. My brother-in-law was an accountant pulling down close to $15K per year, and he and my sister always drove new cars and had a killer house that was real neat!! And she was a stay at home Mom!!

I googled the inflation index... $5.00 in 1914 = $113.11 in today's dollars. 260 working days per year, that equals $29, 400 per year.

[Jim Mason]

There were conditions. Ford also started the sociology department. For the employee's getting double wages ($5 a day) they had to live in company housing, the sociology department would come un anounced to inspect the living conditions which included cleanliness, non-smoking, non- drinking, and interviewed for marital strife. (Some say you couldn't be Jewish, but I'm not sure on that one). Ford did get an improvement in attendence, and an increase in productivity but it was short lived. By 1917 the sociology department was too expensive to run, and was shut down. It was replaced by spies and such on the factory floors. All this wound up as the 'battle for the overpass' several years later

[modelAtony]

5.00 min and up to 7.00 per day. also in book of history of ford 1914. henery , son and wife as sole owners were making $ 400,000.00 per day

[Lawrie]

I started as an apprentice tool and die maker at GM in New Zealand on 33cents an hour,that 33 cents bought a gallon of petrol,
Apprentice starts here at the smelter or power house or mines at $15 hr,petrol costs$5.60 gallon.
Lawrie

[Bruce Adams]

Soooo,
at $5 a day, a $500 Model A took 100 days of work in 1930.
A $30,000 car today would then require $300 take home a day to pay off in 100 days.
I guess that would be $75,000 TAKE HOME PAY with 250 work days.
Would that be $100,000 gross, today?

[Jim Mason]

he also reduced the work day to 8 hours from 9...fwiw,jm

[columbiA]

I used to have a 14 T runabout & the engine block was cast on 1-5-14! My 1st good paying job I was making $1.60 per hr in 1956 & it took less then $5.00 to fill the tank on my A.

[LukeDahlinger]

Originally Posted by Jim Mason

There were conditions. Ford also started the sociology department. For the employee's getting double wages ($5 a day) they had to live in company housing, the sociology department would come un anounced to inspect the living conditions which included cleanliness, non-smoking, non- drinking, and interviewed for marital strife. (Some say you couldn't be Jewish, but I'm not sure on that one). Ford did get an improvement in attendence, and an increase in productivity but it was short lived. By 1917 the sociology department was too expensive to run, and was shut down. It was replaced by spies and such on the factory floors. All this wound up as the 'battle for the overpass' several years later

Ford never had any company housing aside from housing provided in logging camps and the like(Notwithstanding company housing at Willow Run during WW2). The Sociological Dept would make random inspections of employee's living quarters and pass out literature on how to keep a clean house.

Also part of the $5 daily proceeds was put into a type of savings account so you didn't get the full rate of pay in your pay envelope.

If you want to research it a bit more check out these books-

"Ford Methods & Ford Shops" by Arnold & Faurote (written in 1915 from a series of articles in Engineering Magazine) It has one section that goes into detail on how the system worked.

"The Five Dollar Day" by Meyer.

"The Public Image of Henry Ford" by David Lewis

"Ford The Times, The Man" By Nevins & Hill

"Henry Ford: An Interpretation" by Samuel Marquis (Marquis was former head of the Sociological department as well Reverend of Henry & Clara Ford's church)

[modelAtony]

timothy. I will find my book and get back with you on title of book and page number. My wife bought me this book last year has everything about ford from birth till modern day.This book gives more detail than anything I've ever read. have fun modelAtony. lafayette,la.