GIANT MONOPOLY 28 RUN LIKB "CONSTITUTION. MONARCHY". From a Nottingham correspondent. - 1402 The following extracts from an article in the Times Review of Industry (Jamary 1963) gives some idea of the immemse strength of modern. monopolies and are an added argument for unity in action by workers! organisations on a bigger and bigger scnla.
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At the end of 1961 the Sismens group was the second largest industrial employer in “estern Surope; by now it should ba tho largest... The postwar growth of Siemens is a most interesting one, It hed at the war's end lost heavily, both from air-raids and the Russian action of stri~ pping down ths main factories in Berlin at Siemensstadt. It had alge lost its foreign subsidicries, snles organisations and most of its patents, Yet if is now once again the Iargest employer in Germany, it is nearly twice as big as the next in sise, its competitor, Lit, if one includes tha am: loy— 908 in OVersoeas companies in which Siemans has a controlling interest ite employment figures are a handful short of a gquarter-of a million,
Currently the home-based Siemens group ig responsible for about =~ 15% of the output of W, Germanys electrical industry. According to tho firn's chief economist Dr. Platzer, Siemens is caleulating on a rete of growth of 6 - 7% over the next five years. This would take the turm-over to between D.M, 7,100 million and D.u, 7,600 million by Sept 1967. (£630m to £680m approximately). The mumber uf Siemens employees will not increases in the same ratio for Siomens is plannitz in terms-of an ineresse in product— -ivity of 3% a year. Currently the employees separate into nearly 160,000 workers and 60,000 administrative staff or officials. (These officials inglude qualified engineers, In Siemens and Haleke alone there. are 32, 000 officials of whom 10,000 hsve some enginaering qualifioation,) The incresge i‘ in employees in the late 1950's was roughly in the ratio of four workers to every threa officials, a
Moreover it is quite likely that within five years mech of Sismens'.income will be from new sources - though the backbone of tha organ— isation will still be the production of generators and dynamos, Lnch of this now equipment is still in regzesrch development, and pilot instellation stage, olectro~technical equipment for domestic consumers, tole-comminigations, semiconductors, computers, teleprocessing, and input-output a eouipment. eoeceeeae
is can be seen therefore, Siemens' production is immensely fivaraifiad, Siemens is not juet one company but a collection of cormpam ies with a large number cof plants, When asked how a concern of this tyre and siza was controllable, Dr. Tacke, a member of thes board saids "To talk of control is misleading, the only way a firm like this can operate is under the leadership of one mans we are a. constitutional monarchy. Tho present hoad of the firm fa Dr, Erns von Siemens, This gives a commen impulse and makes identification easier for you know that one man is in command, The test is that it works," The board lays down strict general principles, keaps foreign policy, social poligrand control of finanee undur its wing, allots annual budgate them allows the division to got on with it.