Fordism is a system that arose during the last decades of the 19th Century through to the second decade of the 20th Century. Fordism was first recognized by the Italian Communist Antonio Gramsci (1891-1937).
He was the writer of 'Americanism and Fordism'. It was about Fordism representing a new form of capitalism which created a new economic structure which affected social life of the laborer on a large scale. Ford came up with a method of manufacturing inexpensive automobiles using the assembly line which could finish a car in 98 minutes.It was the dominant method of mass production and mass consumption with the help of assembly-line technology. This process broke down complicated tasks into many smaller and simpler ones, which were suitable of unskilled labor.
It was practiced on a large scale, using semi skilled workers. These workers, usually male, had one task each that they had to repeatedly do which is why they did not need to be particularly trained. This method was already used in the slaughterhouses in Chicago in the 1980's but Ford was the first person to use it on a large scale with the single colored and model, mass produced T model car.Ford was the creative force behind the growth to preeminence of the automobile industry, still the world's largest manufacturing activity. As Womack, Jones, and Roos (1990: 11) explain: "Twice in this century [the auto industry] has changed our most fundamental ideas about how we make things. And how we make things dictates not only how we work but what we buy, how we think, and the way we live.
" This system that he created produced standardized products and workers were controlled via Taylorism.Taylorism, also known as the scientific method, was a method of controlling a work place started of by Frederick W Taylor. It was a great contribution to apply the principles of scientific analysis to work and it's organization. He was interested in the development of industrial production but did not think the way of production was adequate.
The workers had decision making power which caused production to be inefficient. He proposed the idea of workers having just work to do and no decisions to make. He also wrote a book about workers and managers cooperating with each other.He assumed that man's nature was instrumental and that man could be motivated by the prospect of earning more. He began the process of measurement of time, management departments were set up to improve the efficiency of work.
The labor was paid according to the products they produced, their wages varied with the amount of hours they worked. This increased efficient production on a large scale. “Taylor believed it was essential to make a direct link between output and pay, and his key proposal was a differential piece-rate.This Taylor argued, would give workers a real incentive to maximize output'' (Harrison, S. 17).
Taylorism was not widely spread. The U. S took up it's practice because of it's broad minded atmosphere and industrial work places were more accepting. Although Taylorism was also introduced in Europe and Paris, it was not successful due to resistance and the participation of trade unions. Furthermore, the main point of Ford's system was standardization -- standardized components, standardized manufacturing processes, and a simple, easy to manufacture standard product.
Because the idea was assembly line where each assembler had one task to do over and over again, therefore, there were no technical problems and the process became very easy to do, this made the product close to perfection. Moreover, the moving assembly line was first implemented at Ford's Model-T Plant at Highland Park, Michigan, in 1914, increasing labor productivity tenfold and permitting stunning price cuts -- from $780 in 1910 to $360 in 1914 (Hounshell, 1984; Abernathy, 1978). Hence, the term Fordize: "to standardize a product and manufacture it by mass means at a price so low that the common man can afford to buy it.Advantages were that under mass production parts were interchangeable, so were assemblers. According to Womack, Jones, and Roos (1990: 31), the mass-production system carried the division of labor to its ultimate extreme: "The assembler ..
. had only one task -- to put two nuts on two bolts or perhaps to attach one wheel to each car. He didn't order parts, procure his tools, repair his equipment, inspect for quality, or even understand what workers on either side of him were doing. ..
. Special repairmen re-paired tools. Housekeepers periodically cleaned the work area.Special inspectors checked quality, and defective work, once discovered, was rectified in a rework area after the end of the line.
... The role of the assembly worker had the lowest status in the factory. In some .
.. plants, management actually told assembly workers that they were needed only because automation could not replace them yet. " Of course, this system required armies of middle managers and staff specialists, whose job it was to gather and process quantities of data for top management to use to coordinate activities, allocate resources, and set strategy.
The disadvantages of Fordism slowly came out to creating a new method of manufacturing called post Fordism. Eventually workers got bored of doing the same things everyday. The concept of assembly line work allowed men to work rather then women so in the beginning there were no women employed to work in the manufacturing of products through this system. The workers were dissatisfied as they were being alienated from the real product. Multi skilled workers were only stuck to doing one job.
Even the highly paid workers were unhappy due to their monotonous jobs,this resulted in problems such as low attendance. (class handouts, 15. 1. 08)"The rapid turnover of labor reduced productivity.
And trade unionists from the Industrial Workers of the World were organizing in Detroit" (Martin Thomas). Ford was spending over 2 million a year to train new workers, and he introduced a 5$ per day wage but it had a limited impact on the problems. Furthermore Fordism did not show any response to the consumers demands. They could only produce on stationary model which couldn't be changed. People started wanting non-standardized products which contradicted the core of this system. They wanted variety and demanded products to be made to their preferences.
Customization was in demand, the concept of luxurious lifestyles took over. In 1920s when General Motors started to develop, Ford came under threat as they were offering a wider range of cars which was more attractive to customers. Thus, a new more flexible system was needed to satisfy the needs of the consumers which is how Post Fordism came into being. Post-Fordism is ''the use of advanced computer controlled production systems with emphasis on flexibility and the production of specialized goods meet the demands of a competitive global economy''(Class handouts, 16. 01.
2008).We can also define post Fordism as a system of manufacture and consumption which can be applied in a wider context to describe a whole system of modern social processes. It typically involves intensifying the features of the Fordist state. When this didn't help, economic and political forces started to look for a new state form that would be able to solve the crises of Fordist accumulation and re stabilize the state system. B. Jessop argues that "What is gradually emerging from the search process is a structural transformation and fundamental strategic reorientation of the capitalist state".
Moreover, Micheal Piore, C. Sabel and the communist Karl Marx defined post Fordism as a new flexible style of manufacturing and networking. A more profound definition of post- Fordism was given by Charles Lee. He said ' Post-Fordism here signals the rise of new model of social organization generally; it marks the maturation of new forms of 'post-industrial labor, whilst marking the beginning of the end for the traditional blue-collar workforce and the older class system which it was wedded.
At the core of these changes lie quite massive technological innovations to the production process.These not only transform the nature of modern working practices and industrial relations, but also mark the onset of new forms in the construction, surveillance and interpretation of markets and consumption' (Lee 1993:110) As a labor process, post-Fordism is a flexible production method based on flexible systems and an appropriately flexible workforce. Its crucial machinery is microelectronics-based information and communications technologies. Post-Fordism is based on the dominance of a flexible and permanently innovative pattern of accumulation.Moreover, it concentrates on flexible production, rising incomes for skilled workers and the service class and increased profits based on technological and other innovations.
Also post-fordist accumulation is oriented to world wide, customized demand, not a stationary product. Post-Fordism is more demand than supply-driven. All these factor help achieve a competitive edge as far as non-price factors such as improved quality and performance for individual products are concerned, this is more acceptable to the workforce and is also responsiveness to customers.Although post Fordism somewhat replaced Fordism, it is important to overview that in smaller, less developed countries, Fordism is still expanding, mass production of standardized goods on assembly lines is becoming more widespread, but in countries such as the U. S and Britain where factors such as consumer demands and women's right matter post Fordism proved to be successful.
The reason this system was successful was because it catered to all the disadvantages of Fordism. Moreover post-Fordist production remains capitalist in character.Employers still seek to maximize their profits and minimize their labor costs. Managers still control the production process.
More in demanded from the labor, they carry out tasks of greater ranges, higher quality, and continue working as long as it takes to complete their jobs. (Fulcher, p:168) In conclusion Fordism and Taylorism methods were considered unacceptable and led to high labor turnover and displeased consumers. Eventually the production systems turned more towards Post-Fordism, which obviously had draw backs, but was considered to be a more efficient and satisfactory way for mass production.Referenceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fordismhttp://www.flowideas.co.uk/?page=articles&sub=Post-Fordism%20in%20Primary%20Schools
