Planters also used group incentives to encourage honesty, doling out a barrel of corn to each hand with the caveat that if anything was stolen from the farm and no one turned in the thief, double the value of that corn would be deducted from each of their Christmas awards.

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The second group includes investment and savings incentives such as low rates for capital gains and preferences for contributions to retirement accounts.

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The group also wants to see incentives for small and medium-sized firms to employ apprentices to boost their skills as well as support for export firms.

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The working group's concerns include, for example, artificial incentives to locate corporate headquarters in one member state, or tax subsidies for particular industries in particular areas, which in practice help domestic firms against their competitors.

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One doctor group, the Infectious Diseases Society of America, calls for new incentives to lure big pharmaceutical companies back into the field.

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But beyond the financial incentives bubble, and the issue of complicit shareholders and analysts, there is also corporate group-think.

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They only offer salary incentives to sales people, all other employees would receive bonuses based upon the success of their group and the company.

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