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EMPLOYMENT  PSYCHOLOGY

issue  must  not  be  lost  sight  of.  From  the  viewpoint  of
the  factory,  there  are  certain  kinds  of  work  for  which
workers  must  be  supplied.  Some  types  of  work  are  less
desirable  than  others.  A  certain  and  usually  limited  number ­
  of  applicants  is  available.  With  these,  all  the  positions ­
  must  be  filled,  the  poorer  as  well  as  the  better.  The
object  of  the  training  school  is  to  fill  them  as  expeditiously
as  possible.  Therefore,  the  qualifications  and  preferences
of  every  applicant  will  be  consulted  so  far  as  possible.
This  is  a  problem  which  can  not  be  formulated  or  solved
abstractly.  Indeed,  it  is  too  broad  a  problem  for  any
particular  factory  to  handle.  It  must  be  attacked  by
the  state  or  by  the  community,  because  it  is  fundamentally ­
  a  problem  of  vocational  training.  In  the  meanwhile
the  practical  needs  of  the  particular  industry,  in  conjunction ­
  with  the  natures  of  particular  individuals,  must  determine ­
  the  degree  to  which  the  selection  of  jobs  is  left  to
the  worker  himself.
In  answer  to  the  objections  that  the  centralized  school
will  encourage  too  critical  a  comparison  between  the  more
and  the  less  desirable  kinds  of  work  it  may  be  contended
that  this  inequality  can  be  overcome  by  means  of  paying
higher  rates  for  less  desirable  types  of  work.  This  is
usually  done,  at  least  in  intent.  Still,  a  certain  degree
of  inequality  will  always  remain,  and  the  centralized
training  school  will  encourage  and  facilitate  the  detection
of  these  inequalities  by  incoming  employees.  This,  however, ­
  may  well  be  considered  as  an  advantage  rather
than  as  a  disadvantage.
The  method  adopted  will  depend  largely  upon  the
character  of  the  problem  to  be  met  in  different  organizations. ­
  Whatever  method  is  chosen  will  have  to  take  into
consideration  certain  fundamental  factors  which  enter