Economics Dictionary of ArgumentsHome
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| Labour time: Labour time in economics refers to the amount of time workers spend producing goods and services. In classical and Marxist economics, it is central to the labor theory of value, where the value of commodities is determined by socially necessary labor time. It also influences productivity, wages, and economic output. See also Value theory, Production theory, Production function, Capital structure._____________Annotation: The above characterizations of concepts are neither definitions nor exhausting presentations of problems related to them. Instead, they are intended to give a short introduction to the contributions below. – Lexicon of Arguments. | |||
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Joan Robinson on Labour Time - Dictionary of Arguments
Harcourt I 20 Labour time/capital/measuring/Robinson/Harcourt: (…) it is impossible to conceive of a quantity of 'capital in general', the value of which is independent of the rates of interest (or interchangeably, profits, given the present assumptions) and wages. Yet such independence is necessary if we are to construct an iso-product curve showing the different quantities of 'capital' and labour which produce a given level of national output, or, as is more usual in the theory of economic growth, if we are to construct a unique relationship between national output per man employed and 'capital' per man employed for any level of total national output. Harcourt I 21 Solution/Robinson: Joan Robinson's response was to measure capital in terms of labour time. Productivity: Sets of equipment with known productive capacities (when combined with given amounts of labour) were to be valued in terms of the labour time required to produce them, compounded over their gestation periods at various given rates of interest. Rates of profit: The same sets of equipment would thus have different values for different rates of profits and different sets would have different values at the same rate of interest. Equilibrium: Which set of equipment would actually be in use in given equilibrium situations may be found by supposing the wage rate to be given and finding the highest rate of profits and therefore set (or sets) of equipment consistent with this wage rate. Objectivity: Competitive forces will, moreover, ensure that these are the equipments chosen and that the associated rate of profits is in fact the one paid. Harcourt: For several reasons this measure has an intuitive appeal as a measure of capital in its role of productive agent in capitalist society. Harcourt I 22 Robinson:“ 'when we consider what addition to productive resources a given amount of accumulation makes, we must measure capital in labour units, for the addition to the stock of productive equipment made by adding an increment of capital depends upon how much work is done in [and time is spent on] constructing it, not upon the cost, in terms of final product, of an hour's labour'. The latter is the 'saving' or 'consumption-forgone' aspect of the decision to accumulate whereby current production is continuously put aside to pay the wages of labour in the investment goods trades (…). In the investment-goods trades themselves, of course, labour is employed now 'in a way which will yield its fruits in the future'.“ (Robinson [1953-4](1), p. 82.) Harcourt: Coupling labour amounts applied indirectly to the production of final output with the rate of interest over gestation periods puts an order of magnitude on the private costs to businessmen in a competitive capitalist society of using labour in the investment-goods trades, so neatly reflecting the influence of the basic mechanism in capitalist economies (…). >Equilibrium/Robinson. 1. Robinson, Joan (1953-4). 'The Production Function and the Theory of Capital', Review of Economic Studies, xxi, pp. 81-106._____________Explanation of symbols: Roman numerals indicate the source, arabic numerals indicate the page number. The corresponding books are indicated on the right hand side. ((s)…): Comment by the sender of the contribution. Translations: Dictionary of Arguments The note [Concept/Author], [Author1]Vs[Author2] or [Author]Vs[term] resp. "problem:"/"solution:", "old:"/"new:" and "thesis:" is an addition from the Dictionary of Arguments. If a German edition is specified, the page numbers refer to this edition. |
EconRobin I James A. Robinson James A. Acemoglu Why nations fail. The origins of power, prosperity, and poverty New York 2012 Robinson I Jan Robinson An Essay on Marxian Economics London 1947 Harcourt I Geoffrey C. Harcourt Some Cambridge controversies in the theory of capital Cambridge 1972 |
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