5 ms·
Henry Ford found that his factory workers were more productive per week at 40 hours than 48 hours. It's not a big surprise that what worked in his factory isn'
by space-monkey 16y ago
Henry Ford found that his factory workers were more productive per week at 40 hours than 48 hours. It's not a big surprise that what worked in his factory isn't ideal for every job almost a century later.
- 979s 16y agoIt was also so they had time to consume. http://www.worklessparty.org/timework/ford.htm http://www.worklessparty.org/timework/ford.htm
- space-monkey 16y agoAdditionally, his turnover went to almost zero since a 40 hour workweek was close to a vacation for a lot of people at the time.
- Hubbert 16y agoBut if 40 is the best data that we have, why is it so commonly treated as an "absolute minimum?" Why are so many "professionals" "expected" to work far more, when hundreds of years of data shows that routinely working significant overtime leads to lower output?
- electromagnetic 16y agoIIRC Ford essentially doubled average pay to encourage more workers to keep coming to his factory. Essentially for working 6 months, you could take 6 months off and make the same yearly as you had at another job. He then, around a decade later IIRC, dropped it to a 40-hour week, which then killed turnover. He had a near permanent staff, making great wages for reduced hours.
- deleted 16y ago[deleted]