Report on profit-sharing and labour co-partnership in the United Kingdom

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Monograph

Identifikator:: 1016336950

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-27123

Document type:: Monograph

Title:: Report on profit-sharing and labour co-partnership in the United Kingdom

Place of publication:: London

Publisher:: His Majesty's Stationery Office

Year of publication:: 1912

Scope:: 1 Online-Ressource (160 Seiten)

Digitisation:: 2018

Collection:: Economics Books

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Document type:: Monograph

Structure type:: Chapter

Title:: IV. Conversion of ordinary businesses into co-operative societies

Collection:: Economics Books

WM. THOMSON & SONS, LTD. 89 holding £200. The remaining £5,759 was held by various individuals, 240 in number (workmen and other persons interested in the Co-operative movement). Of the loan capital, £6,967 belonged to members employed by the Society, and of this £6,876 belonged to Mr. Thomson; £880 belonged to other Societies, almost exclusively retail distributive (Store) Societies; £1,930 to Trade Union organisations; and £2,154 to various individuals. For the first few years after the conversion of this business into a Co-operative Society considerable difficulties were met with, impeding the financial success of the undertaking, because some of the customers, objecting to the association of Mr. Thomson with the co-operative movement and to the adoption of co-operative principles in the concern, withdrew a large amount of business. On the other hand, the working-class Co-operative Societies from the first have given the association considerable orders, and while the Society’s sales were at the outset about £22,500 a year, they have now more than doubled, being £46,932 in 19.11. The profits realised have during the existence of the Society varied greatly in different years, but the shareholders have received their 5 per cent, all through ;* and it is to be noted that on several occasions, in years in which the profits did not suffice to pay this rate in full, the employees voluntarily made good the deficiency out of their wages, the sums thus given up by the workpeople to the shareholders amounting in all to £1,400. After allowing for this amount, the average net addition which the share in profits (bonus on wages plus sums credited to the Assur ance and Pension Fund) allotted to the employees has made to their wages since the Society was formed has been equivalent to 3'3 per cent, on wages. "~ With regard to the wages paid by the Society, it is to be observed that in 1893 it was decided at the suggestion of Mr. Thomson to substitute experimentally for the system of pay ment by piece-work, usual in the woollen weaving industry, a system of time-wages, t and at the same time to adopt, instead of the hours worked in the trade (then 56| hours per week) a 48-hour week; time-wage payment with a 48-hour week has been in operation in these mills ever since. In the last Report of the Society (for the year ending December 31, 1911) it is stated that, desiring to commemorate in a practical manner the twenty-fifth year of the Society’s existence, it had increased wages all round, at the same time increasing the minimum of the weekly pension allowance to 12.s. for men and to 8s. for women. It is of interest to note that no married women are employed by the Society; those women who, upon their marriage, have worked not less than five years with the Society being granted, * On one occasion 4 per cent, only was paid, but the deficiency of 1 per cent, was made up to the shareholders out of profits soon afterwards. f The main objection entertained by the weavers to being paid piece-wages was that they received no remuneration in respect of periods between finishing one job and starting on another, this “ waiting for warps ” causing them considerable disadvantage. The time-wage rates introduced when piece-work was abolished were based upon average earnings in each department during a fairly good year.

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