Analyzing Character: The New Science of Judging Men; Misfits in Business, the Home and Social LifeBlackford, Katherine M. H. (Katherine Melvina Huntsinger)
Science
Analyzing Character: The New Science of Judging Men; Misfits in Business, the Home and Social Life
Blackford, Katherine M. H. (Katherine Melvina Huntsinger)
Characters and characteristics; Success
At the very outset of our investigation, we found that the foreman of the
composing-room purchased type, leads, and slugs, furniture, cases, and all
of the other materials used in his department. The foreman of the
press-room purchased paper, ink, rollers, twine, and other things. The
foreman of the shipping-room purchased packing-cases, wrapping paper,
twine, nails, hammers, marking ink, and other materials he used. The
foreman of the bindery purchased glue, cloth, leather, boards, paper, and
wire. The office manager purchased typewriter ribbons, carbon paper,
clips, paper fasteners, pins, mucilage, rulers, pens, and pencils. The
foreman of the electrotyping department purchased copper, acids, metal,
and tools. We were rather surprised to find that the coal and lubricating
oil for the engine room were purchased by the manager himself, but not at
all surprised to learn that he had never heard of such a quantity as a
British Thermal unit and that he had absolutely no records to show the
kind of coal most efficient under his boilers. A little further
investigation showed that each head of department had charge of the stores
of materials and supplies for his department and gave them out to
employees upon a mere verbal request. We were not long in discovering that
the foreman of the composing-room received "tokens of regard" from
salesmen; that the foreman of the press-room was regularly on the payroll
of several companies furnishing inks and rollers, and had a brother-in-law
running a little print shop around the corner and spending very little
money for ink, paper, and other such materials. Each head of a department
also had full power to "hire and fire," as he called it. The foreman of
the composing-room said to us, when we questioned him in regard to this
matter, "Why, if I didn't have the power to hire and fire I could not
maintain discipline in my department; rather than give that up, I would
resign my position."
As a result of this state of affairs, we found a brother of the foreman
occupying an easy position in the composing-room, a brother-in-law, two
nieces, two nephews, and a son occupying easy positions at good salaries
in the press-room and various other nephews and other semi-dependents
working away under foremen who were related to them in the various
departments. In the composing-room, also, we found, upon careful
investigation, that several of the employees were very heavily overpaid at
times and that they divided the surplus in their pay envelopes with the
foreman.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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