Efficiency Methods
An Introduction to Scientific Management

REMUNERATION 139 system was, however, invented to overcome this objection permanently. Indeed, it seems obvious that one will hardly persuade a set of workmen to make a good trial at the new method under the new conditions, if they are not guaranteed their former wages during the trial. The lower piece-rate can be postponed until a good deal of training has been imparted, and might be deferred almost indefinitely. But meanwhile there must be a minimum time-wage ; and a change which cancels that minimum will be a drastic change, likely to be unpopular. It must be remem- bered, again, that Taylor never pressed this method of payment.1 His view presumably was : intro- duce it if you think you can, but don’t wreck your other work by insisting on it, if it would lose or endanger the hearty co-operation of your workers. He gave, however, one sound plea for its use :—that a slow worker might injure the work of others who were kept waiting for jobs which followed con- secutively on his; and therefore it was to the benefit of the workers generally that there should be some penalty for falling behind. Of course such a state of things would be only temporary. The adjustment aimed at, if any worker continued to fail to come up to the standard of the others, would be to transfer him to other work. The con-, tinned existence of workers at the lower piece-rate 1 See, besides “ Shop Management,” the note on p. 576 of aQ article by him in the American Magazine for Maren, 1911 : " Under scientific management the particular pay system is . . . one of the subordinate elements.”