LIMITATIONS OF SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT THEORY

Although Taylor's methods led to dramatic enhances in productivity and to higher pay in a number of instances, workers and unions began to oppose his approach due to they feared that working harder or faster would exhaust whatever work was available, causing layoffs.

Moreover, Taylor's system clearly meant that time was of the essence. His critics objected to the "speed up" conditions that placed undue pressures on employees to perform at faster and faster levels. The emphasis on productivity-and, by extension, profitability-led some managers to exploit both workers and customers. As a result, more workers connected unions and thus reinforced a pattern of suspicion and mistrust that shaded labour-management relations for decades.