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Unproductive Labor in the U.S. Economy 1964-20101

Author

Listed:
  • Simon Mohun

    (Emeritus Professor of Political Economy at Queen Mary University of London, London, UK)

Abstract

It is commonly proposed by those who accept the distinction between productive and unproductive labor that a rising proportion of unproductive labor constitutes a burden to the operation of a capitalist economy, because unproductive labor is paid out of surplus-value, leaving less available for accumulation. This paper evaluates recent attempts to estimate empirical trends in productive and unproductive labor in the U.S. economy since 1964. These attempts are flawed by a failure to distinguish between working class unproductive labor and the unproductive labor attributable to managers-plus-capitalists. This distinction is at the heart of the trends in the neoliberal era, and these trends suggest that the distinction between productive and unproductive labor is less empirically useful than a focus on class.

Suggested Citation

  • Simon Mohun, 2014. "Unproductive Labor in the U.S. Economy 1964-20101," Review of Radical Political Economics, Union for Radical Political Economics, vol. 46(3), pages 355-379, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:reorpe:v:46:y:2014:i:3:p:355-379
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Lilian N. Rolim & Carolina Troncoso Baltar & Gilberto Tadeu Lima, 2023. "Income distribution, productivity growth, and workers’ bargaining power in an agent-based macroeconomic model," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 33(2), pages 473-516, April.
    2. Lefteris Tsoulfidis & Dimitris Paitaridis, 2019. "Capital intensity, unproductive activities and the Great Recession in the US economy," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 43(3), pages 623-647.
    3. Jonathan F Cogliano, 2023. "Marx’s equalised rate of exploitation," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 47(1), pages 133-169.
    4. Tavani, Daniele & Vasudevan, Ramaa, 2014. "Capitalists, workers, and managers: Wage inequality and effective demand," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 120-131.
    5. Hyun Woong Park & Dong-Min Rieu, 2020. "A Mathematical Formulation of the Dual Nature of Unproductive Labor," Review of Radical Political Economics, Union for Radical Political Economics, vol. 52(4), pages 716-738, December.
    6. Jonathan F. Cogliano, 2017. "Surplus Value Production and Realization in Marxian Theory - Applications to the U.S., 1987-2015," Working Paper Series 2017-01, Dickinson College, Department of Economics.
    7. Roberto Veneziani & Luca Zamparelli & Deepankar Basu, 2017. "Quantitative Empirical Research In Marxist Political Economy: A Selective Review," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(5), pages 1359-1386, December.
    8. Trofimov, Ivan D. & Md. Aris, Nazaria & Bin Rosli, Muhammad K. F., 2018. "Macroeconomic Determinants of the Labour Share of Income: Evidence from OECD Economies," MPRA Paper 85597, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    9. Tsoulfidis, Lefteris & Tsimis, Achilleas & Paitaridis, Dimitris, 2018. "The Rise and Fall of Unproductive Activities in the US Economy 1964-2015: Facts, Theory and Empirical Evidence," MPRA Paper 84035, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    10. Basu, Deepankar, 2015. "A Selective Review of Recent Quantitative Empirical Research in Marxist Political Economy," UMASS Amherst Economics Working Papers 2015-05, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Department of Economics.
    11. Luke Petach & Anastasia Wilson, 2024. "The Rise of Guard Labor in the United States: Evidence from Local Labor Markets," Review of Radical Political Economics, Union for Radical Political Economics, vol. 56(2), pages 185-213, June.
    12. Stamegna, Marco, 2022. "Wage inequality and induced innovation in a classical-Marxian growth model," MPRA Paper 113805, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    productive labor; unproductive labor; U.S. economy since 1964;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E11 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - General Aggregative Models - - - Marxian; Sraffian; Kaleckian
    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
    • N12 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations - - - U.S.; Canada: 1913-

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