The Sincerity of Reform: The Ford Motor Company

The Ford Motor Company\u27s Five Dollar Day labor program led to a multifaceted array of philanthropic initiatives that ran between 1914 and 1921. A progressive spirit within the company led many executives to initiate programs influenced by intellectual discourses regarding the public concern for American social structure. Often, historians have sought to analyze the entire history of the company or Henry Ford himself, especially with an orientation towards production. Contrary to this focus, this research shows how the Ford Motor Company reached beyond its employment base. A financial capacity to employ wide and powerful reforms allowed executives to pressure Detroit\u27s lower classes with the same coercive reform initiatives subjected to employees. The Ford Motor Company insisted on spreading its motto of help the other fellow as far as possible. Through this study, a brief and intense example of welfare capitalism illustrates the implications of broad corporate reach