Origins of the Twentieth-Century Factory System in the United States

Review of Managers and Workers: Origins of the Twentieth-Century Factory System in the United States 1880-1920
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Review of Managers and Workers: Origins of the Twentieth-Century Factory System in the United States 1880-1920 In his book, Daniel Nelson takes the reader on a historical journey of labor and business before and after the first World War. The book deeply tackles the evolution of the factory system of production in the USA. Management and utilization of industrial labor from 1880-1920 are also widely covered. It also explores the effects of the changes on methods of remuneration, new work organizations, workers’ response to change, Taylorism, among others. The thesis of Nelson’s outstanding work is that the character of labor and factory management changed greatly between 1880 and 1920. He states that early historians largely understated these changes. Though their coverage of the shift from handicraft production to factory production was wide enough, the management and workforce of the factories were largely left untouched. He then displays ‘The New Factory System,’ which saw the substitution of centralized formal controls by decentralized controls and larger influence of the management on the workforce and the factory in general. He then illustrates using meticulously researched reports how factory management, technology, and personnel management resulted in the birth of the new system. The author selectively ignores the working conditions, treatment of unions, as well as wage hours to sufficiently focus on the transformation of the manager-employee relationship (Nelson, 1996). The book incorporates studies by various scholars such as Jacoby, Montgomery, Chandler, Scranton, Hounshell, and others, to give the reader a more precise understanding by taking them through the early factory setting, effects of manufacturing and construction, technology on labor controls, the decline of the role of the foreman, management, and progressive legislation (Zieger, 1976). The chapter on ‘The New Factory System and the Worker’ tackles response by organizations, especially those of IWW and Knights of the Labor to industrial capitalism. Through the book, the reader gets an understanding of the factory system in the late 19^th century. During this period, factories were commonly under the control of foremen, some who were ruthless. The factories in this period were typically rooms in the homes of the artisans or buildings near streams of water to provide power for the more intense manufacturing. The mill proprietor or master artisan was the typical manufacturer. On top of its physical presence, the factory environment also consisted of men and equipment as well as complex operations.  However, as capital...