Ford Motor Company established the Sociological Department in 1914 in an attempt to address the myriad issues of a multi-ethnic industrial workforce. Department workers initially were tasked with investigating and monitoring employee behaviors at home and at work in order to meet strict requirements related to the $5-dollar day wage system that revolutionized Detroit's industrial workforce. During the traumatic economic uphevals of the Great Depression, Ford's Sociological Department staff worked with various city, county, state and federal government relief agencies to provide information on worker's employment status and relief assistance.
From the description of Sociological Department welfare reports, 1936-1943. (The Henry Ford). WorldCat record id: 774600271
