My resources:(just a few)



http://minneapolisfed.org/research/sr/sr321.pdf
http://money.cnn.com/2003/10/06/pf/work_less/
http://www127.pair.com/critical/food-20.htm
http://www.worktolive.info/poen_vaca.html

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 This I could very well believe, most of the companies I've worked for are inefficient and disorganized, not the workers faults, most of the people I have worked with over the years are great employees, but the incompetance of management is almost always the cause for poor production results.
 I am in a situation right now at work where I have been asking about a material I need to do my job, our line moves every 9 working days, I've been asking for this material since the first day we had this unit in our area, yesterday was day 7 and finally someone told me they forgot to order this particular material! Now I won't get it until after the line moves.
They could have checked on day 1 and ordered it then, but it has been my experience that no one involved management in U.S. factories worries about anything until the last minute, then they want to blame the workers for being behind and push a bunch of overtime to get caught up.
This is the kind of stuff that happens in all American factories that I have ever worked for, now I will be behind in my production through no fault of my own, this will hold up the next department and that carries all the way down the line.

 Yeah, it would be easy for other cultures to be more efficient, all they have to do is be sure they have everything to do the job on time, at least that would help. Sure doesn't happen around here.

  In american companies the answer to everything is "work more hours", never "hey, lets try to come up with a more efficient process", whenever I have brought up the term efficiency, I get looked at like I just spoke a foriegn language.

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Don't get the wrong idea on this. I can't speak for the rest of Europe but in the UK it means work late until the job is done. In some cases you would not get paid for the extra time. The average Brit works longer hours than anywhere in Europe. In my experience (with some notable exceptions) management is generally as incompetent here as anywhere else. I speak from both sides of the fence from over 25 years as an ordinary shop floor worker & 10 as senior management.

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  Exactly, and they never pay any attention to the workers who are doing the job years on end when they try to bring up ideas to make things more efficient or to make the work flow easier, they just consider it to be the employees bitching about their jobs.
Most companies seem to enjoy paying overtime instead of improving the process to get the job done quicker.

  I've worked in quite a few different factories and all the management knows is what the supervisors tell them, which is almost always inaccurate just to make the supervisor look good and to prove he is a total suck-ass-yes-man.
  I have seen so many production reports turned in that are so far from reality that it is no wonder some of these companies are now shutdown or have lost most of their business, and it's really amazing how the upper management never catches on, they believe every word of bullsh*t that the foremen feed them, while those of us on the floor see this going on and can't do anything about it because the suits won't listen to anyone from the shop anyway, and if you speak up you are in danger of losing your job. Such is the life of a pee-on.

  The company I've been working for since July seems to have it's game together a lot more than the ones I have worked for in the past, I may stick around this one a while.

urgh overtime whats that?
Last christmas working for the Co-Op, i worked 4 straight 60 hour weeks, of which included 3 straight 12 hour days without a single break, all because management wanted to go home early. i had to go between doing the meat counter, the bakery, the produce department, checkouts, grocery and warehouse, while taking delieverys, all because we didnt have the staff, and management as i said took off early. saturdays i had to work freezers, while also supervising produce in the afternoon, and sundays,, i should have had off but had to go in a few times to restock Freezers, it makes me glad i have this post concussion syndrome and am unable to work right now. may be on verg of broke but hell none of that crap:)
oh and so you know the Co-Op has a strict overtime policy, so i worked those 60 hour weeks for the equivelent of 39 hour pay.

OOOOOH i am particuly Bitchy tonight:)

hi Paz.
I did, in the end, i was lucky to get paid 39 hours, due to my contract only being for 29 hours. and 39 was maximum overtime, i left in january after they bumped my hours from 29 to 45 without tell or asking me, and after we agreed that i could only do the 29 due to college requirements. add to that the regulary miss paying me and others what we were owed.
i got sick of it and left. another reason why management should never be trusted if they look incompetent

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Funny that, last time I checked an atlas we appeared to be in Europe.  I also distinctly remember voting in european elections.  We are not a member of the single currency though.

Will