lvc@cbscc.UUCP (Larry Cipriani) (12/03/84)
A company that has been operating for several decades in an unregulated market without patent protection and has what most people would call a monopoly is "Lincoln Electric" of Cleveland Ohio. Lincoln has had a 95% market share for several years. It makes electric welders. They have never laid off a worker, and the have always made a very good profit (or nearly always). Lincoln's workers once voted down a proposed air conditioning system fearing the company's profits would suffer (they have a profit sharing plan). When the company has to cut back in the number of hours worked, everyone's work week is shortened. There is also a generous reward paid to workers that submit cost saving suggestions. Lincoln's employees are non-union, and have repeatedly voted down going union by very wide margins. Other companies could take a lesson from Lincoln's employment and management practices. Lincoln has been getting competition from Japanese companies recently but they are still doing quite well last I heard. The company was the subject of a Fortune magazine article once. To be fair, I've heard complaints from people that worked there once. They were criticized by their coworkers for not working hard enough ! Larry Cipriani cbscc!cbsch!lvc
danw@oliven.UUCP (danw) (12/07/84)
[] ( please excuse the reposting this is worth reading twice. ) >A company that has been operating for several decades in an unregulated >market without patent protection and has what most people would call a >monopoly is "Lincoln Electric" of Cleveland Ohio. Lincoln has had a 95% >market share for several years. It makes electric welders. >They have never laid off a worker, and the have always made a very good >profit (or nearly always). Lincoln's workers once voted down a proposed >air conditioning system fearing the company's profits would suffer (they >have a profit sharing plan). When the company has to cut back in the >number of hours worked, everyone's work week is shortened. There is also >a generous reward paid to workers that submit cost saving suggestions. >Lincoln's employees are non-union, and have repeatedly voted down going >union by very wide margins. Other companies could take a lesson from >Lincoln's employment and management practices. >Lincoln has been getting competition from Japanese companies recently but >they are still doing quite well last I heard. >The company was the subject of a Fortune magazine article once. >>To be fair, I've heard complaints from people that worked there once. >They were criticized by their coworkers for not working hard enough ! > Larry Cipriani > cbscc!cbsch!lvc --------------------------------------------- (-: This is just the sort of monopoly we will ALL have to live with when we are "slaving" away under a repressive libertarian regime. I continue to support mindless socialism. I know that my industry and profession will be secure , no mater how incompetent any of us are. ( I KNOW that a "proper industrial policy" will surely support my industry at the expense of others . ) Far better the promise of womb to tomb security, than the cold, hard reality of hard work and opportunity! :-) danw