[AT] Spam> RE: Garden tractor???

[Steve W.]

Indiana Robinson wrote:
 >
> Neat!!
> I believe that the second picture is not pieces of chairs that were
> being assembled hanging from the walls as it says. I believe those
> were their working patterns... I have such things hanging in my
> woodshop now. About any woodshop that ever does production has a
> pattern rack or room.
> Sure a lot of history in that  run of pictures. Kind of sad.
> Just before I got married almost 47 years ago I worked in a sometimes
> old fashioned factory where we did a lot of precision hand work and
> used a lot of stiff fiber board patterns etc. This brings back a lot
> of memories, a few rather bad ones but most good. Other that the
> prerequisite small handful of jerks, most of us got along quite well
> and since many of the departments were fairly quiet hand work we were
> able to visit as we worked most of the time. Generally pleasantry was
> encouraged and few of the managers were of the hotshot, "big me" type.
> My first job there was based just outside of the office door inside of
> the plant and I was low man on the pole. In that job I took orders
> from everybody but the janitor... But, if the president of the company
> or any number of others in management came to that plants office they
> would all usually stop and chat with me. It was a low man job but I
> was more independent than most others in the company.  I set most of
> my own schedule and my work took me all over 3 factories. As long as
> my jobs got done no one ever questioned where I was and what I was
> doing there.
> While I was working at that plant things got really slow for almost a
> year (mid 1960's). The assistant plant manager would bring out a
> piddly little job or two and say "better make this last all day boys,
> it"s all I have for you"...
> At one point we ran clear out of work and they put a lot of the guys
> to cleaning up stuff, doing little repair stuff on the building,
> anything to avoid laying anyone off. They put me at a bench in a break
> area and brought me every fan in the place (they allowed people to
> bring in their own fans for hot weather) (you could also have radios
> of your own) and I spent several weeks tearing down, cleaning and
> oiling fans. Some belonged to the company and some belonged to
> employees. I also cleaned and greased a lot of machinery that I had
> never used. I cleaned up parts of that huge old 3 story building that
> had not been used in 50 years except for storage. Still I had a job
> every day and a paycheck every week. If they had laid me off for a few
> months I could have lost everything. I moved on to a white shirt and
> tie, very good paying, data processing center job in a computer
> service bureau after about 5 years but I still have never forgotten
> how those folks at that factory took care of me when the chips were
> down. They didn't have to do it... They never laid off a soul. If
> someone left they did not replace them at that time but nobody was
> laid off. They were also in business during the great depression and
> they didn't lay off a single employee then either.
> 
> 
> 

As much as people hate them the Wal~Mart warehouses are a lot like that.
If you show up and do your job and don't screw around they will REALLY
stretch the rules to keep you there.

In this area of NY a good paying job is anything over 15 bucks or so.
The wife is currently at $18.00 plus benefits.
She gets 3 weeks paid vacation, Deferred holidays, Paid personal time,
Paid sick time, choice of 7 different insurance plans.

They also have Safety bonuses and employee bonuses as well.
But those have now been altered so they get added into the employees
check, they used to just hand you a check for the bonus and the Feds
cried foul. They also gave out shirts, jackets and other items. Plus
every year they hand out a turkey (you pick how big) for thanksgiving
and Christmas. Plus hot dogs/burgers and buns for the fourth,
watermelons and such during summer.

One big benefit that Wal~Mart gives to all employees and their spouses
who last past 90 days is a 10% discount card. It covers all items in the
store except some food items.


-- 
Steve W.