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| title | chunk | source | category | tags | date_saved | instance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carl Zeiss | 3/7 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Zeiss | reference | science, encyclopedia | 2026-05-05T17:16:44.046772+00:00 | kb-cron |
== Carl Zeiss as an employer == Zeiss ran his workshop in a strict paternalistic fashion. Microscopes produced by the apprentices which did not meet the strict standards of precision he set were destroyed on the workshop anvil personally by Zeiss. The working hours of the shop were 6 AM until 7 PM. A mid morning break of 15 minutes and a midday break of an hour made for an 11 ¾ hours workday. Despite these strict rules, the working environment in the shop was very good. New recruits to the workshop were interviewed extensively in his home over a glass of wine. The workers were often invited to the gardens of the Zeiss home for wine and refreshments and the workshop paid for the yearly worker's outing to the hills in the hay wagon. His longest serving apprentice Löber earned three Talers per week by 1856 while the other workers earned two and a half. Zeiss's efforts at improving his knowledge of precision machining and optics meant that a substantial library of books accumulated. These became the machinist's library, available for the further education of any worker. As the firm expanded, by 1875 the Zeiss health clinic was established, which guaranteed employees free treatment by a clinic doctor and free access to medication. If a worker was unable to work, wages were paid for six weeks with a further six weeks at half wages. These forward thinking policies even precede Otto von Bismarck's state welfare laws introduced in 1883. Worker morale at the Zeiss works was consistently good.