Courage for Ihe big troubles in
life and patience for the small
ones, and when you have faith
fully fulfilled your day's labor, go
to sleep in peace. God is awake.
—Victor Hugo
GASTONIA
I have a cure for boredom that
will never fail. It is made up of
the following ten rules: Go out
among the people and perform
one kind act ten times.
—Carrie Chapman Catt
VOLUME V
GASTONIA, N. C. OCTOBER, 1956
NO. 10
Contest Of Ideas
Through November
☆
☆
☆
Four Prizes Await Winners
There are three top prizes and a “consolation” gift await
ing winners in the Suggestion Contest which began Sep
tember 15, and is scheduled to conclude November 30.
Prizes are, First; A Firestone clock radio; Second; An
electric mixer; Third; An automatic toaster.
These awards will go to the there will be a drawing for the
employees ranking first, second
third for the highest amount
in awards for the total number
of adopted suggestions turned in
during the contest period.
In addition, every person sub
mitting a suggestion will be
§iven a ticket to be deposited
a box set up at the main
entrance of the plant, where
contest prizes are on display.
When the competition closes,
Boehler Honored
William Boehler, at one time
Weaving Overseer here, recently
received a trophy as “Salesman
of the Year” for Firestone Velon.
Koehler, who is in the Velon
yarn division of the Firestone
Plastics Company, was selected
for the honor by the members
of the entire Velon sales force,
besides the trophy, the Grey
■Advertising Agency presented
him with a personal transistor
^adio.
“consolation” prize—a portable
barbecue grill.
All prizes will be in addition
to the cash awards which are
always paid for all adopted
ideas, on the basis of their value
to the Company.
FOR THE remainder of the
contest time, every employee is
urged to submit at least one sug
gestion.
The more you turn in, the bet
ter your chances to win.
If you haven’t begun to sub
mit your ideas, start now. Your
suggestions can mean extra cash
in the pocket and a prize for
entering the contest. At the
same time, your adopted sug
gestions may result in improv
ing the quality of the Company’s
products, reducing waste, im
proving work methods, reducing
costs, or improving safety op
erations.
Contest winners will be an
nounced soon after November
30.
the afterglow of summer
hortig ^*°t)er, the ripe and golden month, is the time of harvest
Apple's ^^*idles anew memories of falling chinquapins, roasting
Partig sputtering before the first fire of the season, of Halloween
iaiijg K ^ thousand other delights. It is the month when moun-
t with a brilliant blaze of colors, when the Piedmont clay
cojtQ take on more red to contrast with the brown stubble of
Barton looking across an autumn landscape are Jerrie
Qw ^Jl®ft), and Doris McCready, both of Main Office. The scene
" the ~
m
llmtal States ©cparmicnt in'labor
■
ICATE OF SAFETY ACHIEVEMENT
T0xtl I us ^ J
ip
mm
WILL WE KEEP UP THE GOOD RECORD?
For nine years in a row, Firestone Textiles
has qualified for the North Carolina Depart
ment of Labor’s Safety Award. Through the
employees’ safety practices, the plant’s acci
dent frequency rate has been kept low
enough to share this outstanding honor. The
award is given in cooperation with the U. S.
Department of Labor for the larger in
dustries, such as Firestone in Gastonia.
Winning the recognition is no easy matter.
“The 1955 frequency rate qualified the plant
with a percentage too close for comfort,”
Safety Director Alvin Riley recalls. In order
to qualify for the award, a plant must op
erate the entire year without a disabling in
jury, or, reduce the frequency rate over the
previous year by 40 per cent, or maintain a
frequency rate 75 per cent below the state
average.
At the end of August last year the plant’s
lost-time frequency rate was 2.67. For the
same period this year, the rate is 1.08.
But just because the record shows this
improvement, the Safety Department cau
tions supervisors and employees to guard
against being self-satisfied. Complacency
breeds accidents.
Merely to establish a good record and win
an award is not the goal of the Safety De
partment. Working safely is important to
each employee and each member of his
family. The primary purpose of safety is to
prevent unnecessary suffering or loss of life
and limb due to accidents.
Child Safety Week
October 21-27
National Child Accident Pre
vention Week will be observed
in Gastonia October 21-27. Post
P of the Travelers Protective As
sociation of America is sponsor
ing the local observance. The
TPA will launch the drive at
Todd Field and Lineberger Park
where luminous stickers will be
attached to bicycles, because this
year, emphasis will be placed on
bicycle accidents. Prizes will be
offered to entice the children.
When a child has allowed the
reflective tape to be put on his
—Turn to page 7
Flu Shots Ready October 15
You can fight the influenza bug this fall and winter by getting
an immunization vaccine in October and again in January. The
Company is making this health protection available free of charge
to all employees.
October 15 has been set as beginning date for the immuni
zations.
According to Dr. W. B. Parks, plant physician, the vaccine is
administered intradermally—that is, it is injected into the skin.
The flu preventive usually gives little or no unfavorable re
action, Dr. Parks said.
The plant physician points out that public health records show
that influenza leads the list of all reportable communicable diseases
every year in the United States, and often reaches epidemic pro
portions. The vaccine has proved 75 to 80 per cent effective against
the disease.
Watch the bulletin boards for further announcement on the
flu vaccine program schedule.
Paper To Salute Community Service Workers
Plant R ^ Crowders Mountain farm of L.
■Refreshment Service.
R. Foy, manager of the
A SPECIAL MESSAGE
TO ALL EMPLOYEES:
Because so many of you are giving gen
erously of your time to your community
through membership in churches, school
groups, civic organizations, and other in
terests, the Company wants to recognize its
employees in a special edition of Firestone
News. This will be a Community Service
Salute issue which will be published after
all information has been received and re
viewed.
We do not want to miss anyone who is
active in community life and feel that the
best method of getting this information is
through personal interviews with your su
perintendents and overseers. It will take
some time to contact all people and for this
reason we are advising you now in order
that you can be prepared to give us as
much information as possible when you are
interviewed.
It is hoped that all employees will be in
terested in reporting their activities but we
want to make it clear that this is strictly on
a voluntary basis. Your complete coopera
tion will be appreciated.
General Manager