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The labour theory of value, risk and the rate of profit

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  • Toms, Steven

Abstract

The paper extends Marx’s law of value to include the effects of risk. It shows how risk has its origins in the labour process and is transferred between labour and capital on an unequal basis and between capitals on a zero sum basis. An empirical test is then presented, which shows that the employment of labour increases risk from the point of view of the investing capitalist. The conclusion is that the employment of labour is a curate’s egg from capital’s point of view. On the one hand it is essential for the production of sustainable surplus value and therefore for competitive advantage and capital accumulation. On the other hand employment of labour renders such accumulation inherently risky and therefore commensurately more costly to the rational capitalist investor.

Suggested Citation

  • Toms, Steven, 2005. "The labour theory of value, risk and the rate of profit," The York Management School Working Papers 12, The York Management School, University of York.
    • Handle: RePEc:wrc:ymswp1:12
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    Cited by:

    1. Cooper, Christine, 2015. "Accounting for the fictitious: A Marxist contribution to understanding accounting's roles in the financial crisis," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 63-82.
    2. Bowman, C. & Toms, S., 2010. "Accounting for competitive advantage: The resource-based view of the firm and the labour theory of value," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 21(3), pages 183-194.
    3. Toms, J.S., 2010. "The social risk–rent thesis: A reply to Harney," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 21(1), pages 90-95.
    4. Hovardas, Tasos, 2016. "Two paradoxes with one stone: A critical reading of ecological modernization," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 1-7.

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