Ford's Moving Assembly Line

Henry Ford introduced the Model T in 1908, aiming to build a simple, reliable car that ordinary families could afford. To produce it cheaply, Ford's engineers at the Highland Park plant in Michigan combined interchangeable parts, specialized machine tools and, in 1913, a moving assembly line that brought the work to stationary workers. The time needed to assemble a chassis fell from about 12 hours to roughly an hour and a half. The work was repetitive and exhausting, and worker turnover was very high.

In January 1914 Ford responded by announcing the 'five-dollar day', roughly doubling pay for qualifying workers, which reduced turnover and helped workers afford the cars they built. Mass production spread to many industries, lowering prices and raising output, but critics argued it turned skilled work into monotonous tasks and gave managers sweeping control over workers' lives.