PORT SUNLIGHT.

Dunstan Times, Issue 3136, 25 September 1922, Page 8

PORT SUNLIGHT.

LORD LEVERHULME'S WELFARE SCHEMES. Reference has many times been made to the cleanness and beauty of Port Sunlight, the model township created by Lever Brothers, of Sunlight soap fame. But they have done a great deal more than make a beautiful town; they have made provision for the material welfare of the employees of the firm. A London paper' just to hand reports that one of the greatest welfare themes lor workers yet introduced was announced by Lord' Lcvcrhulme, head of the firm, at a meeting at Port Sunlight. It is a development of the co-partnership relations of Lever Brothers and their working staffs. Free benefits which tho Company proposes to confer on all the co-partner employee* include: (1) Free life insurance for, each employee, ranging from £IOO up to £IOOO for staff workers; up to £2OOO for foremen and forewomen; and up to £4OOO for management and directorate. (2) Out-of-work benefits l in addition to State allowances. (3) Free railway travel tc and from Fort Sunlight for women employees. "The scheme is founded,'' said Lord Lcverhuline. "on the desire to reward and encourage intelligence, diligence, and efficient service." The scheme is to operate from tho Ist of October, and the proposed benefits arc:— 1. During any period oF suspension of suspension from employment arising from any cause, such as slackness of trade, to which, in the opinion of the company, a co-partner has not either directly or indirectly contributed, the company will pay to such co-partner, ex gratia, such, a sum by way of supplement to the Stale allowance as, together with that allowance, will yield an amount equal to half the standard weekly rate of wages. We make, therefore, the allowance received from other sources up to half the weekly rate of wages. 2. In the event of » co-partner being ill and thereby prevented from working for at least seven consecutive days, and satisfying the company as to the fact, such co-partner will receive, ex gratia, from tho company the same weekly payment for four weeks as ho or she would hove received for suspension from tho causes' above mentioned. Alter the expiry of four weeks the company will consider whether or not such benefit should be continued for any further 1 period. 3. Each co-partner will be presented ex gratia with a policy of life assurance of the minimum, amount of £IOO, with one year's permiiini paid thereon. Tho intention of the company is to pay the subsequent annual premiums on each policy, and tho company may from time to time increase the amount of such policy and issue an. additional policy or policies as they may determine, but so that the total amount of assurance taken out for any single copartner shall not exceed in the case of the staff £1000: in the case of forewomen and foremen £2OOO. and in the case of the management and directorate £4OOO. 4. In the case of an assured, with the consent of the company, retiring from active employment, the company will make every effort to arrange with, the insurance company that the company may continue to pay the premiums on tho total sum assured. 5. The company will make every effort to arrange with the insurance'company that, in the event of an assured becoming totally incapacitated from work by illness or other like cause, the insurance company will pay the amount assured, as if the assured'had died instead of becoming totally incapacitated, The company will also'make every effort to arrange with the insurance company that, the event of an assurod's employment ceasing with the company for any reason, the assured will be aide to continue his assurance, if he so desires, by payment of ordinary table rates of premiums without medical examination. Lord Leverlniline, in his speech outlining the scheme, said:— "It is exactly 50 years ago since, in my father's grocery warehouse in Bolton, in a top room, cleared of empty tea chests and boxes, I held a social gathering of our stall. It was the year I became 21. 1 am often surprised bow little I have developed since those davs, or, rather changed. 1 hope 1 have'developed, because the ideas that I had when coming of age, of closer contact with those who worked with me in the business have expanded, grown and developed." It was 100 years ago that co-part-nership was introduced by Robert Owen, ire was considered a madman, he was considered to be running his business on unsound principles. There were no railways then, no aeroplanes, submarines, gramophones, cineamas. There were no steamships. "Have \vr made advances from the days when Robert Owen introduced his co-partnership scheme-' asked Lord Leverlniline. "Schemes have been made in advance of Robert Fulton's first steamship, for wo have the Ma u Tetania and the Olympic and others, but in regard to schemes of humanity I say 'No.' Science marches on. Men may catch up or not, as they think ii(. but science goes on. You have only to read tho report of the Commission that visited Lancashire, and especially my native town of Uolton, to find the miserable, inhuman conditions in which people lived a century ago. Little children of 0 were turned out of their beds at n in the morning io go to work. When I was a lad most of the people in my native town wvvi.' either bow-legged or knock-kneed, as a result of their feeble legs having Io carry the weight of their tiny bodies. Wo are living in better houses, liviim under better conditions, and with greater comfort, but in the line of relationship between each other we have not. We are just, standing where Robert Owen left us a century ago. Wo have made no progress. Science inarches forward. We human elements have lagtred behind." Describing the now scheme. Lord Lcverhuline said: "You must understand that, anything I say is an outline, a rough sketch, and merely tentative proposals, subject (o modifications before the final scheme can possibly be adopted. "The schemes are not something instead of wages, (bey are additional to I be standard lull trade union rate. Thev arc founded on-tbe desire Io reward and encourage intelligence,* diligence, and efficient service. The schemes are therefore based en tbe •Trading of employees throughout the whole factory, that grading to he done in a fair, just, and impartial manner. Naturally, if it is just and right to grade men up lor good work, it is equally just to grade, them down for moderate, insufficient, or careless work, bad time-keeping, or any other indifferent service. Then any man who feels that his grading is not being done fairly to himself should have a right of appeal. It is suggested that in the first place the appeal should be made to an independent advisory tribunal selected from the Workers' Representative Committee. For all women, copartners or otherwise, wc have decided to provide free travelling for those women who come or l;o liv train to Port

Sunlight. No money contributions from workers is called for. The persons eligible to benefit under the scheme are the co-partner employees, both men and women, in the employment of Lever Brothers, Ltd., or copartner employees (both men and women) in the employment of any associated company working within a radius of two miles from the War Memorial, Port Sunlight."