This basic principle is still easily identifiable today. The products have changed little, they are incredibly reliable and the most cost effective on the market. The resulting products, market share, employee loyalty and company profitability all flow from Lincoln's founding principles which essentially boil down to fairness. One of the main benefits employees receive is an extremely generous incentive program that is directly proportional to their achievements: "If the money is to be used as an incentive, the program must provide that what is paid to the worker corresponds to what he gained. Everyone's income must be consistent with achievement,” Sharplin's JF Franklin (1989 p4). The incentive plan is intrinsically linked to the half-yearly evaluation of the company's performance. The score obtained on the assessment, a merit rating, is then used as a multiplier to determine the percentage of employees' annual salary (as a percentage of total company profits) they will receive in December. According to Sharp; “The average premium for