Although Henry Fords name is closely associated with the concept of mass production, he should receive equal credit for introducing labor practices as early as 1913 that would be considered advanced even by todays standards. Safety measures were improved, and the work day was reduced to eight hours, compared with the ten|or twelve|hour day common at the time. In order to accommodate the shorter work day, the entire factory was converted from two to three shifts.
In addition, sick leaves as well as improved medical care for those injured on the job were instituted. The Ford Motor Company was one of the first factories to develop a technical school to train specialized skilled laborers and an English language school for immigrants. Some efforts were even made to hire the handicapped and provide jobs for former convicts.
The most widely acclaimed innovation was the five|dollar|a|day minimum wage that was offered in order to recruit and retain the best mechanics and to discourage the growth of labor unions. Ford explained the new wage policy in terms of efficiency and profit sharing. He also mentioned the fact that his employees would be able to purchase the automobiles that they produced in effect creating a market for the product. In order to qualify for the minimum wage, an employee had to establish a decent home and demonstrate good personal habits, including sobriety, thriftiness, industriousness, and dependability. Although some criticism was directed at Ford for involving himself too much in the personal lives of his employees, there can be no doubt that, at a time when immigrants were being taken advantage of in frightful ways, Henry Ford was helping many people to establish themselves in America.
23亨利福特
尽管亨利福特的名字和大生产的定义相连，但他在劳工保护上得到同样的赞誉，由于
他早在1913年便实行了用今天的规范来衡量依旧是一流的标准。安全手段得到改进，日工作时间从当时常见的10或12小时降低到8小时。
为了适应更短的日工作时间，整个工厂从双班变成了三班。而且，病假和改变了的工伤医疗得以规范化。福特汽车公司是最早建
立技术学校来培训专门技工和为移民开设英语学校的工厂之一。公司甚至为雇佣残疾人和
有前科的人而作出了一些努力。最受广泛称赞的改革是实行五USD一天的最低薪资。其目的是招收和留住那些最好的技工并妨碍工会的进步。
福特从效率和收益推荐的角度来讲解这项新的薪资政策。他也提到如此一个事实，他的职员可以买他们生产的汽车||这事实上是为其商品另开辟了一个市场。
为了够资格得到最低薪资，职员需要打造一个得体的家庭并显示出好的个人习惯，包含节制、俭省、勤勉和靠谱。虽然有人批评福特过多地干预
了职员的私生活活，但毫无疑问，在移民们被用恶劣的方法剥削的年代，亨利福特却帮助了很多人在美国扎下根来。
