Industrial Efficiency and State Intervention

 

 

 

Chapter 2

The production crisis, productivity, and the rise of the management question, 1941–4

 

 

 

In 1941–2, Britain was rocked not just by military reverses abroad but also by a production crisis at home, as deliveries of armaments and munitions consistently failed to reach what were considered reasonable targets. The Government sought to cope with this latter situation in the first instance through a range of organisational and legislative measures, geared to maximising resources in the required sectors. At the same time, there was a growing official concern with the question of productivity. It was recognised that, once the economy was fully mobilised for war production, further growth in outputs would be possible only by the rationalisation ...