A Pressing Business: Inside a Czech Vinyl Plant

thequietus.com

19 pointsmgunes2 comments

> Why the disparity between wages, if each worker operates the same presses for similar hours? It's down to individual productivity, Pelc says. The more records they press in each shift, the more money they take home at the end of the month.

I find this interesting. I've had my share of jobs where it seems that there's no point in doing beyond the minimum required because there's no reward and often not even recognition for the extra productivity. The only thing that really comes close is sales jobs where commission can stack up, but that's not necessarily comparable.

There is a long tradition of this sort of payment. [1] I have run across it in industrial settings, particularly where the industry or its management were strongly influenced by Taylorism. [2] However, if quality standards aren't easily achieved by standard work, it can be highly dysfunctional.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piece_work

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_management

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