Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1919-01-25
Bridgeport Solves
Wage Problem
BY Frederic j. Haski1.

Bridgeport, Conn. Jan. "a Bridge
port manufacturers are solving the high
wage prohlem bY bending every effort
- keep wages high
The idea prevailing IN Bridgeport seems
10 be that good work requires contented
workman, and that workmen will no
longer bc contented with pre-war wage
scales This il especially true Of that
prime factor IN New England industry
the skilled mechanic and Bridgeport
manufacturers arc also keeniv aware that
the factory town which has reputation
for high wages Is gong 10 get the pick
Of these skilled workers.
The problem, Of course, Is how 70 keep
ND wartime wages without the assistance
Of wartime prices This problem Is being
solved ii part bv the higher efficiency
which 80 manv factories attained under
the stimulus Of wartime needs.
L Is wcll-known fact that any pro-
cess which is done over ard over again,
year ia and year out, gets 70 DC done in
a certain fixed way. This il not always
the best way or the quickest way but
hy the sheer force Of repetition It imposes
itself upon the minds Of men. It com
nands the respect which belongs TO all
things old and established II becomes
eataclvsm ean shattcr this hard mold of
habit which hampers 50 many OF the
things men dc.
WAR sHArrEFED HABIT
The var WAS such cataclysm. The
war demanded immediate production IN
quantity, and everything else, including
tradition, had 10 be disrcgarded. Then.
too, war pitched into the industrial ma
chine a lot OF fresh human material.
Minds and hands came 70 work that
knew nothing OF he traditions and
sacred rituals Of the shop, bur were bent
solely on getting things done. so new,
more direct and efficient ways of doing
things came to prevail, and these gains
IN efficiency are being held They, more
than ANYTHING else, enable the manu-
facturer to keep the figures on the pay
roll high
Among the most vigorous and efficient
smaShers Of factory idols were the women
which war brought into industry The
women knew nothing Of established
methods They we're utterly unhampered
BY precedent They had the glorious
freedom Of ignorance. Likewise they
had finer consclenccs than men, and
were eager to do good days work for
the exceptionally good days wages
which most of them we're getting for the
first time 50 the women worked revo-
lutions in more shops than one.
For example, there was a certain pro-
cess which was done by certain machine
at the rate of twenty-five a day No
one had ever thought of doing more than
Twenty-Five of these processes day
That number Was as immutahle, TO the
minds of the old wor kers, as the number Of
hours III a day.
sPEEDED MACHINE CP
One day some yenturesome person,
burning with patriotism. suggested that
this machine could be specded up to
thirty processes Il day. And it was done.
while men wondered and shook their
heads Still later, women were Tut on
these machines Without asking any-
one about il, and without even knowing
that they were doing anything out of
the ordinary they began putting through
the process at the rate of forty-hye to
fifty i day. None Of them knew or cared
what the old ligger had done before
they made its qualntance
Needless to add. women have won q
permanent plane on Bridgeport pay
rolls
Another reconstruction problem in
Bridgeport is the man who calls hum
self a skilled mechanic, and whose ! iii
consists III the ability to do one little
thing exceedingly well For example.
4 man applied for work here who stated
hy way Of reference that he had worked
for eight years in famous Detroit
automobile factory On the strength
OF this he was regarded with high faver
until the fact came out that during those
years he had been exclusively engaged
in putting on bolt number nine.
At putting on number nine bolts he
WAS world heater, but in factory
where there vas no bolt number nine
he was not much more use than lyrical
poet
IN the same general class Is the "arti-
fetal mechanic. tile War-brde- groom 1t
industry. who left some other Job and
learned 70 do one little factory proccss in