The Great War, a Catalyst for Changing Class Structure in Britain, Research Paper

The Great War, a Catalyst for Changing Class Structure in Britain, 1914-1919 - Research Paper Example More so, finally, arms race is also another triggering factor of the Great War because Britain and Germany had the best navies during that period and so naval rivalry between the two countries played a significant role in the emergence of World War 1. In 1914, Britain reigned over a quarter of the world’s population, it was a very powerful country, stratified in a class system, and that individuals were determined by their class ranks. About fourteen million civilians participated in the war and so they played a leading role in changing the class structure of Britain of 1914.2 The First World War changed the social class structure in Britain in many ways, first, it reduced the number of servants employed, increased the number of salaried workers, and increased ownership of the country’s wealth.3 This paper explores how the Great War changed the class structure in Britain covering its effects on the upper, middle and lower classes as well as the role of women in the how and how this change their status in the society. Class is a social category where individuals are grouped together based on their status in the society. It refers to an individual’s position in the social hierarchy based on their accessibility to wealth and power and this implies that those who are wealthy and powerful are ranked high as compared to those who are poor and less powerful. Notably, the nature of the class system is usually known by the distribution of wealth in the country.4 The British life was strictly stratified into a class system; however, during the war the traditional class differences were softened.5 The aristocracy was the wealthiest and most powerful people in Britain during the war, and they had influence because of their wealth and power. The middle or working class who worked hard to earn a living doing jobs like farmers and traders followed them. The British middle class valued education and generally, they work as managers, civil servants, or

Strategic HRD and HRM Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Strategic HRD and HRM - Assignment Example Each cupboard is unique and requires flexibility and an attention to detail within the manufacturing process to suit client's customization needs. Company delivers bespoke fume-cupboards to customers' gate but does not get involved in its installation. The Company consists of 220 personnel, 175 of them work on manufacturing process-the core process. Balance of 45 personnel work in the sales department, design department and the support function. Support functions include payroll, accounts, HRM, and administration. HRD problem as identified in company structure appears to be the fact that HRM function is small and inadequately staffed within the company. Further evidence in the case reveals that this function is not able to achieve its objectives to a very large extent. Similarly sales and design departments appear to be under Staffed.The Company has core operations in the manufacturing process in which 80% of employees are deployed. It comprises of several functional sections like th e sheet metal cutting and folding for the cupboards, protective coating application, initial assembly, plumbing, and electrical sections. The first HRD/Organizational problem identified in core operations appears to be loose span of supervisory control over laborers. Assuming 4 supervisors per functional section, we have about 20 supervisors in 5 sections and 155 laborers under such supervisors. Each supervisor on an average has about 8 laborers under him. Second problem relates to very high labor turnover on manufacturing shop floor. This disturbs the supervisor span of control further which is already high at 8 laborers and possibly obstructs the product customization process leading to defectives and quality deficiencies. Moreover quality control function at the company is very weak too. Orders schedules are not adhered to and orders are not built as per customer specifications. In fact that there is no separate quality function in the factory, and there is a general apathy about the quality of the product produced. Apathy is also evident in the untidy workplaces. The production process does not seem to be efficient and has not been reviewed for several years. The only quality checking that is done is the check of the final product against the original specification, and the standard of skills available within the company do not match the high level of product specification required to ensure custom quality. As a result orders are sent to customers despite errors of the manufacturing process that have been logged on final inspection, in order to meet delivery dates. This involves the company in having to rectify problems once the cupboard has been either delivered or installed, and attracts additional unnecessary costs that are borne by the FumeGo.Design function, within the core manufacturing operations, is understaffed and has weak organizational linkages resulting in poor intra organizational communications. The designers do not liaise at all with manufa cturing for ensuring adherence to product design. The design section is finicky about costly perfect solutions rather than value engineering. They often add some otherwise redundant aesthetic