Page:The Economic Journal Volume 1.djvu/317

 INCREASE IN REMUNERATION UNDER PROFIT-SHARING 29 two of 11'2 and 11'5 per cent. respectively; while a bonus at the rate of 26'9 per cent. on wages has been paid in one nstance. With regard to the extent to which the participation in profits extends, it may be taken that, in most instances, the number of the participants s very nearly identical with the total number of employees; though sometimes a mhimum period of service is required to entitle an employee to share in profits. As a rule, the participants share h the ratio of tile wages earned by each; n a few cases length of service entities an employee to an extra share. In considering the actual addition made to the remuneration of the employees of these firms, it would obviously be proper to take into account the fact--if fact it were--that any of them have used the adoption of Profit-sharing as a means to induce their workpeople to accept a lower rate of wages than they could and would have insisted upon if no scheme of Profit-sharing had been in existence.  Although it would not be correct to say that all, without exception, pay their employees according to the scale of wages and the regulations recognized as ' fair' by the trade unions, yet, speaking with some knowledge of the circumstances, I may express my opinion that in one only of these cases are the employees receiving lower wages by reason of their sharing in profits, this exception being the case in which the employees have received the abnormally high bonus of 26'9 per cent. In all the other hstances I believe that the bonus addition to the normal remuneration of the employees. on wages. is a clear Coming now to the co-operative associations--societies whose members belong, vith comparatively very few exceptions, to the working-classes it should be noted that our figures relate to those only appearing in the last Returns of the Co-operative Union. Nothing will be said in regard to those very numerous associa- tions founded on a profit-sharing basis which have been wound up, nor in regard to those cases in which Profit-sharing has been abandoned by co-operative societies. Societies of the kind called by the working-men co-operators ' distributive' are associations formed primarily to retail to their customers (who in lnost cases hold shares in the ' store ') groceries and other articles not manufactured by these associations. But some of these ' distributives' possess 'productive' departments, in which they manufacture a certain prt of the goods which they ' That Profit-sharing may be adopted expressly for this purpose is quite possible. Indeed, in regard to a firm by which Profit-sharing has been introduced within the last few months, I have reason to believe this to be the case.