THE FUTURE OF WORK STUDY IN AGRICULTURE

Before this time a few case studies were made but there was no systematic approach.

This started when a group of ten agricultural work study officers completed a basic work study course at an industrial consultant training centre.

When we started we could not foresee that the application of work study in agriculture in the Netherlands would have such a wide impact as it really has had during the past two decades; the number of farm work study specialists in the Netherlands raised until about 120 at present. This is 1 per 3,000 man years applied in agriculture or 1 per 20,000 hectares of cultivated land (1967: gross output resp. farm income, 1080 resp. 510 dollars per hectare; LEI/CBS 2).

Three factors may be considered important to explain the growing interest among farmers for the achievements of work study:

1. Industrialization resulting in an exodus of workers from the farm: paid workers, family help and young farmers.

The exodus was promoted by a continued increase of the wagerates. This made it attractive to substitute labour by other means of production.