When capitalists cared -

When capitalists cared

Friday, September 7th, 2012

In the rancorous debate over how to get the sluggish economy moving, we have forgotten the wisdom of Henry Ford. In 1914, not long after the Ford Motor Company came out with the Model T, Ford made the startling announcement that he would pay his workers the unheard-of wage of $5 a day.

Not only was it a matter of social justice, Ford wrote, but paying high wages was also smart business. When wages are low, uncertainty dogs the marketplace and growth is weak. But when pay is high and steady, Ford asserted, business is more secure because workers earn enough to become good customers. They can afford to buy Model Ts. Read more

Sources

Hedrick Smith in The New York Times
Image: Wikia

Hedrick Smith is the author of “Who Stole the American Dream?”

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News category: Analysis and Comment.

Tags: capitalism, Economic crisis, economic growth, Economy, just wages, US, US economy, USA

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