Apparently most employers who made such adjustments assumed, at first, that they were made once for all. But it was found, of course, that living costs wouldn't "stay put," so that a new adjustment needed to be made next year. This led naturally to the idea of a periodical adjustment. The Bankers' Trust Co., which had made one adjustment, appointed a committee to make further investigation. Its report, made December 15, 1917, covered 22 pages.
The Oneida Community inaugurated, on January 1, 1917, a system of compensation for the high cost of living by the use of Bradstreet's index number for wholesale prices. Each workman receives two weekly pay envelopes—one containing regular wages and the other containing a certain percentage thereof calculated from Bradstreet's number. An initial adjustment of 16 per cent was made as representing the increase in the cost of living between January 1, 1916 (when the general wage scale had been revised), and January 1, 1917. This 16 per cent was applied to the wages for the first month. In each succeeding month a 1 per cent advance or decline of wages was made for each 20 points change in the Bradstreet number.
The Kelley-How-Thomson Co. (hardware), of Duluth, Minnesota, adopted, independently, a similar plan.
The George Worthington Co. (hardware), of Cleveland, Ohio, on October 1, 1917, followed the lead of the Oneida Community, with the exception that all employees were included excepting the directors or salesmen on a commission basis.
The Printz-Biederman Co. (clothing), also of Cleveland, received the idea from the George Worthington Co. The introduction of the plan here was through the employees' organization.
The Mishawaka Woolen Mfg. Co., of Mishawaka, Indiana; and the Union Bleaching & Finishing Co. of Greenville, South Carolina, both pay wages on the basis of index numbers.
