The Principles of Scientific Management

FUNDAMENTALS OF SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 21 schemes of management and which results from a careful study on the part of the workmen of what will promote their best interests. “The writer was much interested recently in hearing one small but experienced golf caddy boy of twelve explaining to a green caddy, who had shown special energy and interest, the necessity of going slow and lagging behind his man when he came up to the ball, showing him that since they were paid by the hour, the faster they went the less money they got, and finally telling him that if he went too fast the other boys would give him a licking. “This represents a type of systematic soldiering which is not, however, very serious, since it is done with the knowledge of the employer, who can quite easily break it up if he wishes. “The greater part of the systematic soldiering, however, is done by the men with the deliberate object of keeping their employers ignorant of how fast work can be done. “So universal is soldiering for this purpose that hardly a competent workman can be found in a large establishment, whether he works by the day or on piece work, contract work, or under any of the ordinary systems, who does not devote a con- siderable part of his time to studying just how slow he can work and still convince his employer that he is going at a good pace. “The causes for this are, briefly, that practically all employers determine upon a maximum sum which they feel it is right for each of their classes