﻿54

II. — PRIVATE FIRMS AND COMPANIES.

time in sympathy with the general * labour unrest ’ through-
out the country. They returned to work on practically the
same terms as we offered them before they went out, and
we have reason to believe that a large majority of them were
led by a few, and kept from work by ‘ peaceful pickets,’
thus causing the whole of them to lose three or more weeks’
wages unnecessarily. We are giving our scheme a further
trial, as it is certainly appreciated by the employees generally,
and it has always been our wish to maintain harmonious rela-
tions with them. It has the effect of inducing them to take
an interest in their work and teaching them to avoid waste;
hut as the speed at which a great deal of our work is done
cannot be accelerated through any effort of the employees, it
is doubtful whether we are recouped for the extra expen-
diture, excepting through small savings made by care on the
employees’ part to avoid waste.”

Profit-Sharing in Gasworks.

Out of the total of 106,189 persons employed by all the 133
firms known to the Department to have profit-sharing schemes in
operation, no less than 28,246 are in the employment of Gas
Companies. A short account of the scheme in operation in
relation to the employees of the South Metropolitan Gas Company
of London, the pioneer of this form of Profit-sharing, will he
of interest.

South Metropolitan Gas Company.

At the beginning of November, 1889, the South Metropolitan
Gas Company, which had already been giving its officers and
foremen an annual bonus dependent upon its profits since 1886,
adopted a scheme of general participation. In March, 1889,
“ The National Union of Gas Workers and General Labourers of
11 Great Britain and Ireland ” was formed, and shortly afterwards
succeeded in obtaining very considerable concessions in favour of
men employed in gasworks. In August-September, 1889, the
London dock strike took place; and a general movement was
started for securing better terms of employment for the
v/orking-classes, and especially for labourers doing heavy work
demanding a minimum of technical skill, such as the work
required in gas making. In the course of the autumn the Gas
Workers’ Union made certain demands upon the South Metro-
politan Gas Company; these were not resisted, hut the company’s
officials became convinced that further concessions wdiich the
company would feel unable to grant would probably be put
forward by the Union, and that “ a strike was likely to take place
“ at any moment without any warning.” In order to avert this
contingency, Mr. (afterwards Sir) George Livesey, the chairman
of the company, induced the directors to assent to the adoption
of a special system of Profit-sharing. The company employs a
large number of workmen, some all the year round regularly, the
others in winter only. The offer made (on November 6, 1889) to
all the regular staff in the service of the company was as follows.
The shareholders (as the law then stood) were allowed to receive a