Human Resource Management 15th Edition by Robert Mathis,John Jackson,Sean Valentine ,Patricia Meglich

Exercise 1

Building Cars by Building Workers
As a leader in the industrial revolution, Henry Ford had a unique approach to managing workers in his automobile assembly plants. In the early 1900s, he doubled workers' pay to $5 per day in an effort to reduce turnover. He also did so because he had a sincere interest in their well-being.
Henry Ford's interest in his employees' health and security went well beyond the factory floor. He required that his workers be "thrifty and neat." He created a group within the company called the Sociological Department whose job it was to visit employees at home and help them manage their household finances and family health. Eventually, the department had over 200 agents who worked with Ford's 13,000 employees, many of whom were immigrants seeking to improve their lot in life.
Ford's assembly line workers had to obtain authorization from the Sociological Department if they wished to buy a car. They would be quizzed on their family status (whether they were married and had children), any outstanding debts, and whether they had life insurance. Only after proving their financial security were they granted permission to buy a car. Ford also provided the services of a legal team whose lawyers would help workers with issues ranging from buying a home to obtaining U.S. citizenship-all at no cost to the employee.
Jobs at Ford were highly coveted, and Ford Motor Company was viewed as an employer of choice because it paid the highest wages in the automotive industry. The paternalistic approach of Henry Ford has long since disappeared at the company, and the automotive industry has moved forward in the hundred years since the Sociological Department checked in on workers and helped them become good employees and good citizens in their communities. Consider Ford's humanitarian way of dealing with his employees as you answer the following questions:
How did Ford's approach to employee relations impact employees? Do you think it was to their advantage or disadvantage for the company to take such an active interest in their lives?