Shut down weeks

[Grandad.Malky]

And if management had tried to introduce new machinery that improved productivity, and made better quality products possible? The unions would have screamed blue murder about how they were taking jobs away and whined and puled until the company went into bankruptcy. Mind you they did the same thing to the country in the 70's.

 

So how comes when I started it was one man one job, a fitter wouldn’t change a light bulb ……… that was a electricians job, everything changed in the 80`s, computerisation and “team work” meant many people lost their jobs …… move on another decade and the jobs all went. ….. so much for moving with the times.

[handypandy]

So how comes when I started it was one man one job, a fitter wouldn’t change a light bulb ……… that was a electricians job, everything changed in the 80`s, computerisation and “team work” meant many people lost their jobs …… move on another decade and the jobs all went. ….. so much for moving with the times.

 

The boat that we missed, because of the 'us and them' attitude that prevailed on both sides of the office door, was not following the German model. Union reps and other workers groups, along with the company's bankers, were given seats in board meetings with full voting rights. This led to much better co-operation and more successful businesses. They also made sure that they trained their youngsters properly with the apprenticeship schemes.

[denlin]

German workers could teach us a thing or two. Isaw them on a building programme putting up what was essentially a flat pack house. It was amazing everything fitted to perfection, they worked well together and cleaned up after themselves properly including their vehicles. Everything was spotless:clap:

[Obelix]

So how comes when I started it was one man one job, a fitter wouldn’t change a light bulb ……… that was a electricians job, everything changed in the 80`s, computerisation and “team work” meant many people lost their jobs …… move on another decade and the jobs all went. ….. so much for moving with the times.

 

Which is the problem. Say a machinist loses his work lamp - he's idle, costing money and production whilst waiting on a sparky to come swap a lamp.

 

Far better to let the sparky do the work only he can do, and the machinist can change his own lamp.

 

But no, that's no on, so instead the entire factory goes on strike, loses massively more production and so alienates customers with constant stoppages that they take orders elsewhere...

 

Labour relations in this country consisted of cutting your nose off to spite your face. It's no coincidence that in the 70's we were the sick man of Europe, and when we sorted this ludicrous antagonism out in the early 80's we became a damn sight more propsperous.

 

Then some fools voted Labour back in and it all went to pot again...