New Haven, Conn.
Manifestly, all large employers of labor must train their help to
a greater or less degree. It has always been the practice of the
Winchester Company to do a great deal of this training, but until
the past few years it had all been done in the shops or office where
the candidate was to work. For many years it has been the practice
to take intelligent boys and young men in the office with the idea
of continually promoting them to more responsible positions after
they became competent and the positions developed where they might be
used. Our graduate apprentices, adjusters and tool setters have been
so well trained that they have always been sought for by competitive
concerns. Since the war, and especially during the past six or
eight months, it has become increasingly necessary to develop the
training of employees to the greatest extent. Where formerly help
might be obtained who had, at least, some knowledge of machines and
shop practice, _it is now necessary to take help who have absolutely
no knowledge of factory work and teach them to become skilled_. In
addition, _this must be done in the least possible time_.
To take care of this condition, we have developed in addition to our
regular apprentice course, a training course for administrative and
executive positions, an Office School, a Gun Department Adjuster’s
Shop, a Cartridge Department Training Shop and Tool Department
Training Shop.
The regular apprentice course is designed to give complete training
for machinists, gauge makers, tool and fixture makers, etc. The
course which ordinarily requires three years to complete has recently
been shortened so that some of the boys are graduated in two years.
It is the desire to give thorough instruction in the practical work
mentioned above. The average enrollment is approximately 90.
The training course for administrative and executive positions is
designed to cover briefly such shop and office practice as will give
the broadest general knowledge that is likely to be required of those
in the more important positions in the administrative organization.
This class consists of only about a dozen men who are picked with all
possible care.