Artwork Details
- Title
- Hiram C. Nicholas Gold Medal, Founder’s Award, The Council of Profit Sharing Industries
- Artist
- Founder
- Medallic Art Company
- Date
- after 1947
- Location
- Not on view
- Dimensions
- 3 in. (7.7 cm) diam.
- Credit Line
- Gift of Mrs. Joseph Renier
- Mediums
- Mediums Description
- bronze
- Keywords
- Figure male — full length
- Portrait male — Nicholas, Hiram C. — bust
- Object — other — torch
- Occupation — other — businessman
- Object Number
- 1967.93.52
Artwork Description
Hiram C. Nicholas (died 1950) headed the Quality Castings Company in Orrville, Ohio. He is remembered for having helped establish the Council of Profit Sharing (known today as the Profit Sharing/401(k) Council of America) in 1947. Nicholas and his collaborators believed that profit sharing promised reduced labor tensions, improved productivity, and higher profits. The movement grew out of the labor tensions of the 1930s and the “hate and strife” of the Second World War. The reverse of Joseph Renier’s medal shows a worker, identified by his coveralls, standing arm in arm with a suited company manager.