Cyclopedia of Commerce, Accountancy, Business Administration, v. 02 (of 10)American School of Correspondence
General
Cyclopedia of Commerce, Accountancy, Business Administration, v. 02 (of 10)
American School of Correspondence
Accounting; Business; Commerce
On a recent piece of work, the steam drills, of which there were 14,
were averaging 4 feet of hole drilled per drill hour, the drillers
were getting 30 cents per drill hour, and helpers 18¾ cents.
For a period of ten days the drills were kept under the personal
supervision and instruction of the expert in charge; and at the end
of that time a bonus of 2 cents per foot for everything above 70 feet
in 8 hours was offered to the men. On this basis no one could get a
bonus unless he did 100 per cent better than the average previously
attained. Exceedingly cold weather intervened, preventing a good deal
of drilling; but within two weeks of the return to normal weather
conditions, the average drill output rose to over 6 feet per drill
hour, and one man obtained the remarkable record of 142 feet in 9
hours, or over 15.7 feet per drill hour. On this work a careful record
was kept day by day, of the performance of each man; and the men who
had a consistently low average were gradually discharged, thereby
helping out the bonus system. The men were also under more or less
constant instruction, and therefore the improvement was not entirely
due to the bonus system.
A further modification of the bonus system is advisable in some cases,
where an extra bonus is given for exceedingly high performance, such,
for example, as paying the men an extra cent bonus, making 3 cents
above, say, 90 or 100 feet per 8 hours. It is well, however, to apply
this modified arrangement only after there has been an elimination of
the poorest men. When possible, the payment of bonuses should be made
at very short intervals, and not left to a monthly settlement.
[Illustration: A CORNER IN THE LAUNCH BUILDING SHOP OF THE GAS ENGINE &
POWER CO. AND CHARLES L. SEABURY & CO., CONSOLIDATED]
4. =Bulletin Board Posting.= Posting upon a bulletin board in the
storehouse or office, of the records of performance accomplished in
different parts of the work day by day or week by week, is a very
valuable adjunct to the other methods of stimulation. The methods above
indicated will keep the men on the _qui vive_ during the day. A very
valuable improvement can be instituted if the more intelligent among
them can be led to think about their work after working hours. This
must necessarily be done in rather a subtle way. Posting records at
the end of the day's work so that the men see them on their way home,
will do a great deal toward keeping the subject alive until the next
morning. When the men have been led to a state where they discuss with
each other the methods of improved efficiency, for the following day
amazing results can be counted upon.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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