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Rivethead cultural issues of work essay

Introduction

Ben Hampers book Rivethead, Tales From The Assembly

Line can be described as gritty in the face account of a manufacturing plant workers

struggles against his factory, his co-workers, and the time

time clock. Hamper makes no apologies for any of his activities

many of that have been unorthodox or illegal. Instead he

justifies them in a approach that makes the factory workers

conflict, disturbance, fighting, turmoil apparent to prospects who have under no circumstances set feet on an

manufacturing plant and wouldnt have the vaguest idea just how much

blood, perspiration and holes go into the items we take pertaining to

granted each day.

Rivethead is an account with the entire life of Author

Bill Hamper, by his long family family tree of shoprats and

his catholic college upbringing to his many different

positions on the Basic Motors flow line and his

evenly numerous lay-offs from the GENERAL MOTORS Truck Bus Division.

Sadly the many years of back disregarding labor mixed

with Hinders own personal devils led him to check in an

outpatient mental center (at the time of the completion of

this book) where he discovers daily to handle his several years

of mental anguish.

Rivethead is a cultural commentary on industrial America

assembly line job, and the vehicle industry. This essay

nevertheless , will concentrate on the more particular aspects

Hinder considers, including the monotony needed on a (then)

modern flow line, the relationship and hierarchy between

workers and the interaction with management along with

both group and specific responses to work and job

pleasure (or shortage there of).

Analysis

When Henry Ford first produced the idea of the

assembly line he was heralded as one of the most frontward

thinking men of his time, and without the assembly series we

would no doubt certainly not be while powerful a nation as we are today.

The assembly line theory as it matured in commercial

society yet , proved to destroy personnel creativity and

stifle the actual essence of human your life. Growth and change.

On an manufacturing plant workers happen to be degraded to automatons

executing the same tasks over and over and also.

Day in working day

out, without having any kind of knowledge or input into any of

the other duties related to completion of the job. This

boredom in the workplace leaks over into the daily life of

many factory workers and affects that they live their particular life

outside of the factory following the whistle blows as much as this

does when theyre around the assembly line. This spillover was

observed by simply Hamper of his Grand daddy. Straight residence from

operate, dinner, overnight time news and immediately into bed by

7: 00 p. meters. He came about each weekday at a few: 30 a.

m., fixed himself

a lot of black caffeine, turned on the kitchen radio, smoked cigarettes a

several Lucky Attacks and patiently lay to keep for work on a

1 / 4 to five. This strategy never different one iota in the

four he worked for GM (Hamper pg. 6). It is fairly

obvious that the monotony of the assembly line has a way of

placing personal sessions for its employees that at some point

work all their way out from the factory and into the home. One

interesting question that may be raised, is whether people who

just like their lifestyle to be routinized eventually find their method

to an manufacturing plant or in the event the assembly line monotony brings

the particular capabilities to routinize out in people who previously would

not live by many sessions.

The human relationships Hamper talks about between the personnel

on the assembly line are exceptional to say the least and

sometimes humorous or hazardous. After scanning this book My spouse and i

would surmise that most manufacturing plant workers build friendships

with other factory personnel almost specifically. This could be

due to their similarity of interests, likeness of careers

the fact that they will be in contact daily, or just simply by virtue

in the timing with their shifts (as was Hampers case). I believe

one thing that helped to bind the employees together was your

fact that that they saw this as personnel against supervision and by

their solidarity that they could turn the balance of power in

their prefer. This solidarity was noticeable when a fresh

supervisor was hired who wasnt slicing the workers any kind of

slack, hence the workers resorted to skade. We merely had

zero other recourse.

At times these power-gods had to be

reminded that it was we, the workers, who also kept this place

runnin (Hamper pg. 206). Interactions between employees were

generally very very good, although there was obviously a hierarchy among

the workers between your new guys and the knowledgeable guys.

Franklin

made a job out of intimidating rookies

(Hamper pg. 51) since until a worker got put in 90 days he

could possibly be fired for virtually any reason. Only a few of Hampers

co-workers observed eye to.

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