From: "allan tracy" 
Newsgroups: uk.finance uk.legal
Subject: Re: surveillance software at work
Date: 5 Jun 2006 13:04:39 -0700
   posting-account=-L2MrAwAAABNICCeKmXIJxMSZGhpOY1W

>
> Hear, hear.  One is presumably assigned a certain workload and if that
> work gets done in (less than) the time allotted to it, what should anyone
> care about what else you do in the rest of the time?

In the bad old days of British Leyland, there were quality issues with
their new cars, owners constantly having to return the cars because of
defects etc.

In order to address these issues, the management decided to switch away
from piecework - this was payment according to how much you produce.
They came up with measured day working instead, a fixed amount of work
per day.

Unfortunately, in the fine tradition of state owned industries, most of
the management hadn't got a clue about making production built cars and
the unions were able to run rings round them.

Most of the workers were able to complete the measured day in about two
hours. On the night shift, quality remained abysmal as the workers
rushed to complete their work so they could get some kip.

After a few years, it led to the notorious News of the World expose of
night shift workers asleep on sunbeds. As they were able to sleep at
night, some of the workers had got themselves another job some even in
other BL plants where they also worked another measured day.