The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1919-10-09
noting a. tho financial partners, Tor

of money necessary to meet their gen.
eral living expenses, leaving their sur
plus profits in the business. Any part
nership or any profit-sharng plan that
divided up the profits and withdrew
them In cash at the end of every year
could not last very long,
Why Some Profit Sharing Plans Fall
Many profit-sharing plans have divid-
ed profits with employees on a cash
basis and turned the money over to the
employees every SO often, usually once
year. The result has been that II a
man earning $1,000 q year received
5000 at the end of the year from II
profit-sharing plan, he promptly lifted
his living expenses from $1,000 basis
to a $1,000 basis, and began to look
upon his income as $1,000 rather than
| 1000, and the extra 5000 did little 10
increase his activity and efficiency, OF
! to promote his intellectual efforts IN
the business concerned.
! Then II period came when busl-
ness was dull or poor and he did not
get the extra $500. he found fault with
the owners of the business and became
grouchy and Inclined to lose interest
In his work.
! Little real substantial benefit comes
from profit sharing plan where the
profits are paid out In cash, except
perhaps where man uses the money
| toward buying a home.
Full Publicity Needed About the Bust
ness.
In establishing prOfit-sharing 1t is
OF the utmost Importance that the
entire organization, the wage and sal
airy earnerS, know in advance exactly
what they are expected to accomplish.
I mean by this that, on entering a new
year, they should know exactly what
the preceding years accomplishments
have been The annual statement Of
the concern should be full and explicit,
20 that every man engaged In the enter
prise will know what business was
done in the preceding year and on what
basis profits were and are to be dis
tributed.
Some Objections to the Plan Anss~ered.
Many people have said to me: ooh
but 1t takes long while for man
who is only saving small sum each
year to acquire much of financial in
terest In the concern by which he Is
employed" have always found that
such criticism comes from someone
who has not given sufficient thought to
the subject, for a small interest means
as much to the man having COM
paratively small salary a. a large in
terest does to the man Of large affairs.
Let us summarize some of the ad
vantages Of this method Of profit char
ing:
FirstIt Is real, 1t Is genuine. The
organization as whole. and each in
divdual in it, has a definite goal for
the years work They know at the
beginning Of year how much money
must be earned to cover what we will
and fixed charges: they know that
they are being pair salaries to earn
those fixed charges; they know that
they share in all the profits over and
above those fixed charges, and they
know the basis on which they share.
and that the amount Of such profits
largely depends on the individual and
collective effort Of each individual In
the organization. This in itself is Of
great practical value to the business
from dollar-and-cent standpoint.
Second--Having reached the goal
set, the money over and above the sal
aries they are paid-in other words,
their profits-are invested in the bust
ness in which they are engaged and
on which their whole time and thought
and energy should be centered.
Profit sharing on the basis l favor
is sometimes objected to by men or
concerns who do not wish to let even
their own employees know how little
or how much money they are making
each year II they are not making
enough money and the business is run
ming on close margin each year,
then by all means they should set
their situation before their men
adopt such a profit-sharing plan as I
have outlined. and get the genuine CO.
operation Of every man towards In
creaslng the profits and putting the
business in a prosperous condition.
The man who is running on small
margin and making little profit may
object to making his business affairs
public property. on the ground that he
would be putting a weapon in the hands
Of his competitors. Such a mans best
protection against his competitors Is q
loyal, closely knit organization OF the
highest efficiency, and this important
advantage he can only secure through
q bona fde proflt-sharing plan.
AS for the man who is making 70
much money that he IL afraid to let even
his own employees know how much
he is making, to that man say that
he Is man who, more than any other,
IL responsible for the serious differ
ences today existing between capital
and labor, for with the growing intel
ligence Of the masses, how can he ex.
pect such situa ton to continued
As for the man who is making large
profits but who objects to profit sharing
on the ground that he wants to put
those profits away against the day
when business may be poor, to such Q