The oasis., 1912-04-13

organized and developed with his tissues in such condition that his mental and physical action is slower than that of another, can reach the same plane of efficiency of the other no more than can the slower locomotive be made to at tain the quickness and speed mani tested by it's prototype. The effort to make them do so can be con- ceived to be made pitiless, grinding and breaking. In this age of great production and remarkable facil ities there is no need for standard izing men, as though they were mere machines, where practical experience shows that under what seem identical conditions machines themselves do not reach the same performances.
 With the foregoing prologue THE OASIS presents herewith some of the conclusions of the congressional committee:
 By the stop watch you may be able to determine the time in which piece of work can be done, but you do not ! thereby alone determine the length of time in which it ought to be done."
 "The time of the operations of any machine can be made with reasonable degree of accuracy" says the report, "because all of the elements can be taken into consideration in making the com putation. A machine is an inanimate thing. It has no life, no brain, no senti- ment, and no place in the social or moral world. With workman it is diff ferent He is living, moving, sentl- ent, social being; he is entitled to all the rights, privileges, opportunities, and respectful consideration given to other men. He would be less than a man
 if he did not resent the introduction of any system which deals with him Tn the same way as beast of burden or any inanimate machine.
 "There is no work that can be per- formed, or that is performed, that IS not preceded bva mental process on the part
 of the workman. The more skill needed ] AL ( kn tar ha pfal
 process which precedes the expression of it. So far as your committee has been able to learn, there is no method known to scientific management by which a
 time study can be made of the mental
 process preceding the physical act. "The elements of the mental process not being susceptible of determination
 bv stop-watch time study, the study of itself must consequently be inaccurate and the workmen are justified in object ing 70 such time study being used as a basis upon which to compute the'r days work and compensation when in theil
 judgment injustice is done them there by.
 "In an effort to simulate the workmer
 to increased activity various methods are used-such as discharge, fear of dis , charge, stop-watch time studies, anC bonuses. The bonus system is based 1 upon the establishment of task large ? enough for an ordinary days work anC
 then holding additional compensation 5 as an inducement to workman to dC , more than he would ordinarily do
 "YOur committee is of the oplnlof | that the mere mental attitude of th' a employer is too variable and unsub
 stantal basis upon which to rest th' 6 material welfare of the wage worker. ''When it comes to introducing stimG
 laion, change of mental attitude b, l which the workman is willing to give ! greater amount of energy for the sam
 amount of pay may be very desirable t : the employer, but it is not always so de sirable to the employee" ]"