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Show A Premium on Labor. Philadelphia 1'rcsn. A paper read by Mr. F. A. Halsey, of Canada, before the society of mechanical mechani-cal engineers, in session last week in week in 1'rovidenco, li. I., merits the attention of every student of tha labor question. The subject of Mr. Halsey's addresewas "The Premium Plan of Payiug Labor," and he endeavored to show that it is much more advantageous than any of the other methods proposed for encouraging labor to make increased efforts, because it offers the workman a share of the; profits arising from greater exertion. Mr. Halsey's plan appears to bo simple and practicable, as easily understood un-derstood by the working man as by the employer, and equally proiitablo to both. The idea consists in offering a workman work-man a premium for every hour gained n accomplishing a certain amount of iwork, the premium to be less than tho rate of wages paid. Thus, if a man has usually consumed ten hours in performing a piece of work, and by extra exertion reduces the time to nine hours, he is to receive the wages he would have ordinarily earned in nine hours and a premium besides for tha hour gained. Tho idea can probably be best explained by a table. The case supposed is one where a workman has been paid 30 cents an hour and the premium offered is 15 cents for every hour gained over the ten hours which it hns been found by experience is usually consumed in performing the task. The following would be the re-stilt: 1 9 3 4 5 5 I l'x 51 231 3 I Z ii JJ 1J.L Hours, I . 1 111 too 0 3.(M TO ' a 7U .15 2 'U7 M Si ! .31 8 70 :1 7 n 10 .l!V U M .34 1.S0 . 2 40 . 40 6 1.M1 75 2.S5 .45 . The merits of tho system can be seen at a glance. On every reduction of time the earnings of the workman increase in-crease hourly until when tho time is reduced re-duced one half he earns ouo half more per hour than he diil under the old method, and be has also gained five hours in which to perform more work. The employer also gains by getting the work which cost him heretofore tt:t.00 performed for i.a5, and he is, besides, enabled to turn out twice as many products pro-ducts in the same timo and with the same plant. The scheme is easily understood un-derstood by both workman and em- j ployer. The gains are mutual and the J ehango from tho old method is natural and easy. Besides, there can be nothing noth-ing compulsory about its introduction and a trial eau be made iu almost any establishment. The feature that most commends the scheme is its apparent ability to awaken the ambition of the workman to a degree obtained by no other method yet tried. In work paid by the day or the hour there is little incentive to the working man. He knows that every extra exertion brings no gaiu to him. hut is to the profit of his employer only. Piece work has the disadvantage of encouraging careless work. The result of profit sharing is distant and uncertain, and the method of operating it is complicated and often of-ten beyond the comprehension of the ordinary laboring man. He does not know whether he is receiving the share promised him or not. None of these objections can be raised against Mr. Halsey's scheme, tho chief recommendations recom-mendations of which are its simplicity and the instaneous appeal it makes to the workingraan'a ambition. The great need is for a systotn that will educate and discipline the laboring man, arouse his ambition, and show him that his interests and those of his employer are identical. The idea has gone abroad among the working classes that labor is a curse, that as much of it snould be shirked as possible, and that tho interests of employer and employe are antagonistic. Anything that will correct these erroneous errone-ous ideas should have encouragement. Profit-sharing has made little progress in this country, and co-operation still less. Neither scheme seems to suit the conditions of society here. Mr. Halsey's Hal-sey's system appears more feasible than any yet attemptod, aud deserves a sincere sin-cere trial. |