MGMT 104 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Labour Power, The Employer, Trade Secret
Document Summary
The transformation of the workplace in the 20th century. Capitalism started when employers invested in people to make a bigger profit. The employer buys labor power- the worker"s capacity to do work; measured in time units and improved or expanded by skill or education. Labor (work)- the actual human effort in the process of purchase. If labor power remains at capacity, no goods get produced and the capitalist has no products to sell for profit. Workers must provide labor power, but not necessarily labor. Management can be easy if employers are hiring outside workers for a short period of time (supply and demand ensure that. Conflict exists because workers" and employers" interests collide work is done well). Piece-rate pay- employers only pay for work that is done; limited application. Workers resist discipline and the pact that employers try to impose. People keep trying to control workers to increase production and minimize worker.
