The Charlotte Democrat., 1888-11-30
What Constitutes Faithful EMPLOY ee

An exchange says: Every faithful en-
ployee will constitute himself the guard
ian Of his employers property. The man
who will either williully waste what is
intrusted to his care, or encourage snch
waste in others, is unworthy of confidence,
and, should be ever become the head of
business, will deserve to be treated in the
same way.
There is vast deal of truth in the
above, adds the Industrial World, and vet
how many workmen there are who will.
fully squander not only the property of
their employers, but, what is equally val.
uable, the time which the latter pays for.
Workmen do not seem TO know that the
prosperity of manufacturing concern
oftentimes depends upon the observation
of closest economy. The enlargement of
the wage fund depends on this economy
and any fair minded employer would
rather expend in wages the amount saved
by economical observance than have the
amount wasted. The little waste here
and there that seems so trivial to the
workman, when scattered through q great
number of hands amounts in the total TO
large sum. When a workman, sees the
first evidence OF machine getting out of
order, by drawing the attention of the
proper parties he may save an expensive
bill of repairs and also considerable loss
consequent upon the idleness of the ma
chine while undergoing repairs. The care
less workman says, 81: Is none OF my bust.
ness whether the machine gets out of re.
pair or not" and SO he lets it run on until
it is entirely disabled. A workman ob.
serves quantity OF material carelesslY
left where it will deteriorate or be spoiled.
Instead of taking care of it, or notifying
the manager or superintendent, he allows
it to remain and be destroyed or injured,
consoling himself with the thought that
sit is none of his loss anyway" Perhaps
he observes brother workman willfully
wasting or injuring the material upon
| which the latter is working. Duty would
tell him to inform the foreman of such
derelction on the part of his fellow la.
borer, but he does not, for lack of interest
in his employers welfare. He may see
where a saving could be made in the
manipulation OF the material upon which
he is working, yet for lack of interest he
refrains from making any suggestions
leading to the discovery of that fact. Not
lnfrequently the workman refrains from
protecting his employers rights and pro-
perty because by so doing it will entail
| auulLIOuaI iaUOE OF care upon nlme0II, OF
impose a responsibility which he does not
wish to assume. Some seem to think there
is no obligation incurred by them when
engaging themselves to work except such
as is included in the rule of "doing the
least work for the most pay" Such men
shuttle through their labors, sighting the
work here, wasting material there, squan-
dering all the time they can, and think.
ing of no ones interest save their own.
This class of workmen are the first to be
dismissed when hard times come. When
wages fall, theirs are the first to be low.
cred. If the force of the shop, by reason of
slack trade. has to be curtailed, they are
the ones selected to leave. Self-interest
teaches the manufacturer to give the best
places and the largest remuneration to his
most faithful workmen. This is not only
natural, but right and commendable. The
employee who thinks most of doing his
work well and of subserving his employers
interests, and less of combinations and
strikes, will succeed the best and rise the
highest and the most rapidly in the scale
of prosperity.