Final answer:
Fredrick Taylor's basic assumption was that workers are inherently lazy and require strict supervision and detailed instructions to be productive. His scientific management system aimed at standardizing tasks and ensuring efficiency, often at the cost of workers' well-being.
Step-by-step explanation:
The most basic assumption about the nature of people in Fredrick Taylor's system of scientific management is that employees are inherently lazy and that management needs to implement a system to maximize their productivity. Taylor's approach emphasized that workers must be trained and developed to perform their tasks as efficiently as possible through the use of time-motion studies. This method sought to standardize work processes and reduce any inefficiencies by closely monitoring and controlling workers' actions.
Despite Taylor's assertions that his method would benefit both employer and employee, his theory was often criticized for its lack of concern for worker well-being, reducing workers to mere cogs in a machine. Efforts were focused on increasing output and reducing costs, which sometimes led to dehumanization and a sentiment of exploitation among workers. Taylor believed that workers needed strict supervision and detailed instructions on how to carry out their tasks in order to prevent them from working inefficiently.