IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/new/wpaper/1811.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

The Classical Treatment of Skilled Labor

Author

Listed:
  • Anwar Shaikh

    (Department of Economics, New School for Social Research)

  • Kyle Glenn

    (Department of Economics, New School for Social Research)

Abstract

The ability to accommodate heterogeneous types of labor has presented a serious issue for the labor theory of value. Ever since Bohm-Bawerk's criticism of Marx's theory as circular, Marxist's have contributed considerable efforts to prove the labor theory of value holds with the inclusion of heterogeneous labor. This paper analyzes some of the more notable approaches to the problem. This paper proceeds in the following manner: Section 1 briefly introduces the topic of skilled labor within the labor theory of value as well as Bohm-Bawerk's theoretical critique. Section 2 presents the basic framework and notation used in the paper. Section 3 explores Hilferding's solution to the problem as formalized by Rowthorn. The well-known contribution to the literature by Bowles and Gintis is also addressed here. Section 4 examines the extension to heterogeneous labor within the "New Interpretation" of Dumenil and Foley. Section 5 introduces a method formalized by Shaikh which this paper refers to as a "cost of skilling" approach. Finally, section 6 discusses key implications of the varying approaches and situates the cost of skilling amongst them.

Suggested Citation

  • Anwar Shaikh & Kyle Glenn, 2018. "The Classical Treatment of Skilled Labor," Working Papers 1811, New School for Social Research, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:new:wpaper:1811
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.economicpolicyresearch.org/econ/2018/NSSR_WP_112018.pdf
    File Function: First version, 2018
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Gérard Duménil & Duncan Foley & Dominique Lévy, 2009. "A Note On The Formal Treatment Of Exploitation In A Model With Heterogenous Labor," Metroeconomica, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 60(3), pages 560-567, July.
    2. Ochoa, Eduardo M, 1989. "Values, Prices, and Wage-Profit Curves in the U.S. Economy," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 13(3), pages 413-429, September.
    3. Ulrich Krause, 1981. "Heterogeneous Labour and the Fundamental Marxian Theorem," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 48(1), pages 173-178.
    4. Anwar Shaikh, 2018. "Skilled Labor in the Classical tradition," Working Papers 1801, New School for Social Research, Department of Economics.
    5. Bowles, Samuel & Gintis, Herbert, 1978. "Professor Morishima on Heterogeneous Labour and Marxian Value Theory," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 2(3), pages 311-314, September.
    6. Lefteris Tsoulfidis, 2008. "Price-value deviations: further evidence from input-output data of Japan," International Review of Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(6), pages 707-724.
    7. Morishima, Michio, 1978. "S. Bowles and H. Gintis on the Marxian Theory of Value and Heterogeneous Labour," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 2(3), pages 305-309, September.
    8. Duncan K. Foley, 1982. "The Value of Money the Value of Labor Power and the Marxian Transformation Problem," Review of Radical Political Economics, Union for Radical Political Economics, vol. 14(2), pages 37-47, June.
    9. Philip Harvey, 1985. "The Value-Creating Capacity of Skilled Labor in Marxian Economics," Review of Radical Political Economics, Union for Radical Political Economics, vol. 17(1-2), pages 83-102, March.
    10. Bowles, Samuel & Gintis, Herbert, 1977. "The Marxian Theory of Value and Heterogeneous Labour: A Critique and Reformulation," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 1(2), pages 173-192, June.
    11. Rosinger, Jean-Luc, 1996. "An Elementary Proof of the Bowles-Gintis-Morishima Fundamental Marxian Theorem with Heterogeneous Labour," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 20(6), pages 779-782, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Kyle Glenn, 2021. "Social Labor vs Human Capital: Competing Theories of Skills," Working Papers 2115, New School for Social Research, Department of Economics.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Roberto Veneziani & Luca Zamparelli & Naoki Yoshihara, 2017. "A Progress Report On Marxian Economic Theory: On The Controversies In Exploitation Theory Since Okishio (1963)," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(5), pages 1421-1448, December.
    2. Gérard Duménil & Duncan Foley & Dominique Lévy, 2009. "A Note On The Formal Treatment Of Exploitation In A Model With Heterogenous Labor," Metroeconomica, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 60(3), pages 560-567, July.
    3. Yoshihara, Naoki, 2014. "A Progressive Report on Marxian Economic Theory: On the Controversies in Exploitation Theory since Okishio (1963)," Discussion Paper Series 607, Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University.
    4. Veneziani, Roberto & Yoshihara, Naoki, 2014. "One million miles to go: taking the axiomatic road to defining exploitation," UMASS Amherst Economics Working Papers 2014-10, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Department of Economics.
    5. Yoshihara, Naoki & Veneziani, Roberto, 2013. "The Measurement of Labour Content: A General Approach," Discussion Paper Series 587, Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University.
    6. Yoshihara, Naoki & Veneziani, Roberto, 2023. "The measurement of labour content: An axiomatic approach," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 212(C), pages 392-402.
    7. Lefteris Tsoulfidis & Dimitris Paitaridis, 2017. "Monetary Expressions of Labour Time and Market Prices: Theory and Evidence from China, Japan and Korea," Review of Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(1), pages 111-132, January.
    8. Jonathan F Cogliano, 2023. "Marx’s equalised rate of exploitation," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 47(1), pages 133-169.
    9. Kenji Mori, 2010. "Charasoff and Dmitriev: An Analytical Characterisation of Origins of Linear Economics," TERG Discussion Papers 249, Graduate School of Economics and Management, Tohoku University.
    10. Kenji Mori, 2008. "Maurice Potron'S Linear Economic Model: A De Facto Proof Of ‘Fundamental Marxian Theorem’," Metroeconomica, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 59(3), pages 511-529, July.
    11. Jonathan F. Cogliano & Roberto Veneziani & Naoki Yoshihara, 2021. "The Dynamics of International Exploitation," Working Papers 2021-02, University of Massachusetts Boston, Economics Department.
    12. Naoki Yoshihara & Roberto Veneziani, 2009. "Exploitation as the Unequal Exchange of Labour: An Axiomatic Approach," Working Papers 655, Queen Mary University of London, School of Economics and Finance.
    13. Roberto Veneziani & Naoki Yoshihara, 2017. "Globalisation and inequality in a dynamic economy: an axiomatic analysis of unequal exchange," Social Choice and Welfare, Springer;The Society for Social Choice and Welfare, vol. 49(3), pages 445-468, December.
    14. Mariolis, Theodore, 2006. "A Critique of the ‘New Approach’ to the Transformation Problem and a Proposal," MPRA Paper 24019, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    15. Yoshihara, Naoki & Veneziani, Roberto, 2018. "The Theory Of Exploitation As The Unequal Exchange Of Labour," Economics and Philosophy, Cambridge University Press, vol. 34(3), pages 381-409, November.
    16. Jonathan F. Cogliano & Roberto Veneziani & Naoki Yoshihara, 2016. "The Dynamics of Exploitation and Class in Accumulation Economies," Metroeconomica, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 67(2), pages 242-290, May.
    17. Luis Daniel Torres-González, 2020. "The Characteristics of the Productive Structure Behind the Empirical Regularities in Production Prices Curves," Working Papers 2016, New School for Social Research, Department of Economics.
    18. Jonathan F. Cogliano & Roberto Veneziani & Naoki Yoshihara, 2022. "Computational methods and classical‐Marxian economics," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(2), pages 310-349, April.
    19. 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.
    20. Torres-González, Luis Daniel, 2022. "The Characteristics of the Productive Structure Behind the Empirical Regularities in Production Prices Curves," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 622-659.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • B14 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought through 1925 - - - Socialist; Marxist

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:new:wpaper:1811. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Mark Setterfield (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/denewus.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.