Marxism and Labour Theory - The Conflicts between Employee and Employer

According to the Mainstream Economics school of thought, there is not a labor problem, in their eyes there might me a labor situation which will work itself out naturally. Having no problem with labor, there would be no solution, having nothing really change the Mainstream Economics school of thought. The ‘mosquito' in the Human Resources school of thought is poor management, and if management can be improved then employees will feel more appreciated better wages will follow due to the realization of the value of the employee. Therefore, employees will be happier in the workplace increasing productivity. In the Human Resources school of thought, the improvement to management will create a balance between efficiency, equity, and voice. In the Industrial Relations school of thought, the labor problem is blamed on the unequal bargaining power given to large corporations and so little given to the individual workers. Industrial Relations' solution to such inequality of bargaining power is to increase workers bargaining power through organized unions to create collective bargaining. In a different scenario the cause of the labor problem lies with the control of societal institutions and the means of production for the benefit of certain classes; this is through the lens of Critical Industrial Relations school of thought. This extreme school of thought calls for an extreme solution; being that there should be a significant restructuring to the nature of capitalism. Critical Industrial Relations is the most extreme thinking and is sometimes referred to the Marxist school of

The structure of society under the conflict theorists’ views defines distinctions between different classes. The power and authority taken by the upper class, by the rich and mighty, causes inevitably problems within the lower class of society. Deviance, crime, violence and poverty are what the lower class of society was becoming. Unemployment is a large issue within the lower class of society; this is due to the classes that have money; use it for education and to further their skills. The classes within society who are able to obtain better and further education to advance their skills are the ones that employees are seeking for their workplaces. The inequality between the classes is what creates the unemployed and the circle that they are currently sitting in.

We currently live in a market society that is completely different from past societies. In market society, the society is a system of self-regulating market as a whole (Polanyi 43). People are needed to act and think in particular ways for the market society to function (Polanyi 68). For instance, people in market society believe that economic relations are more needed than interpersonal relations (Polanyi 44). Polanyi calls the emergence of market society “the great transformation”. My thesis is the change to market society is a fundamental transformation due to market society being characterized by self-regulation, fictitious commodities and an emphasis on individuals, which are considerably different from past societies. A number of the differences that take place under the workplace in the system of market society will also be shown. Furthermore, the thoughts that people have about the world in market society will be explained by pointing out the association between the “spirit of capitalism” and the “protestant work ethic”. Lastly, the reasons why these ideological conditions are essential to the emergence of market society will be provided.

“Robert Tobias (2010) argues that to be effective, human resource managers need to embrace the possibility of positive and productive relations with labor unions.” (Riccucci pg. 10-11)

One glaring problem he realized was the wealthy elite would always strive to increase their fortune while the lower class want enough to just live comfortably. To do so the lower class rely on the wealthy to provide jobs in order to scrape a living; here Carnegie realizes something that Marx would appreciate, that the wealthy are aware of this mundane face and can exploit them for a profit. But out of this comes progress and escalation of comfort. Carnegie states, “We start, then, with a condition of affairs under which the best interests of the race are promoted, but which inevitably gives wealth to the few. Thus far, accepting conditions as they exist, the situation can be surveyed and pronounced good” (Carnegie). There are distinct lines between the employer and the employee and while there is not too much intimacy between the two, the relationship works perfectly well. The friction would ensure that things get down and the wheels of industry keep turning without any potential

In “Wealth” by Andrew Carnegie it is stated “and often there is friction between the employer and the employed, between capital and labor, between rich and poor. Human

Karl Marx's Communist Manifesto was most appealing to and revolutionary for the industrial workers of 1848 (and those to come after that time). The call for unification of the proletariat and abolishment of the Bourgeoisie was an urgent one during a time of rapid progress in all aspects of industrial life. This urgency of The Communist Manifesto and the desire for change of political ideologies (to match the exponential rate of progress of wealth and industry) created not only a spate of revolutions, but a long lasting change in political ideas for industrialized European nations. The Communist Manifesto created a sense of unity and class awareness throughout the

Godard’s definition of labour is akin to that of the Marxists and it states that labour is the conversion of human effort into some measurable input in exchange for money. He argues that labour is given by the employed to established economic and social relationships with the employer (Godard, 1993).

The german philosopher, Marx, is considered one of the most influential thinkers of all time. His philosophies are used throughout literature after his time. Marx wrote during a time which the excesses of the new Industrial Revolution were most prominent. His ideas revolutionized thoughts about capitalism and its relation to business, individuals, states and the environment. The motivation of idea behind Marx’s philosophy was the idea of materialism. Materialists believe that it is the material conditions of the world, for instance, the structure of the economy and the distribution of wealth, that give rise to ideas such as who should leads and deserves to earn what they earn. The idea is contrary to idealism, which states that it is ideas that give rise to material reality. The traits of Marxism is found throughout the novel Brave New World.

In regards to the labour-capital relation within a traditional capitalist corporation Marx & Engels (2007) refer to the dialectic between the capitalists (or bourgeoisie) who own the property and the means of production and the laborers (or proletariat) who own no property and are obligated to sell their labour to the bourgeoisie to gain substance. For Marx & Engels, this labour market is inherently fraught with tension, since the interests of the capitalist and labourers are diametrically opposed, and the balance of power between capitalists and labourers tips further in the favour of the capitalists. Because workers have nothing to sell but their labour, the bourgeoisie are able to exploit them by paying them less than the true value created by their labour. Furthermore, because of the unequal positions of capitalist and labourer, labourers must work for someone else- they must do work imposed on them as a means of satisfying the needs of others. As a result, labourers inevitably experience alienation which Marx’s Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts (1844) summarizes as the separation of individuals from the objects they create, which in turn results in one’s separation from other people, from oneself, and ultimately from one’s human nature.

“Robert Tobias (2010) argues that to be effective, human resource managers need to embrace the possibility of positive and productive relations with labor unions.” (Riccucci pg. 10-11)

Given the 21st century table in our text we can clearly see the differences of today’s managers in comparison with yesterday’s management styles. The 21st century manager is a more positive approach to dealing effectively with employees. In the past when the capitalist society and its capitalist factories and organizations were flourishing, the employees were pushed to their limits. Unions were subsequently formed to deter any potential wrongdoings and unfair labor practices. Today there are some unions, but are they necessary?

Nowadays, with increasing variety in organizations, several inequalities in the workplace have happened. In spite of the regulation policies which have limited inequalities on the workplace, it still exists, because of personal characteristics, such as gender, age and different race (Allan, C & Mcphail, R & Wilkinson, A 2008, p. 225). Inequality in the workplaces can be defined as the unfair discrimination relating to things, such as wage differentials between men and women, unfair practices and unfairness opportunities, particularly with regard to employment of people of different ethnic origins (Grainge, 2007, online). C2E TODAY (Committed 2 Equality) shows that in spite of large UK companies declaring that they have eliminated inequalities in the workplace around 77 per cent of them have little or no equality practices. Even though small companies’ situation is more serious, 97.5 per cent of them have no equality practices in place (Committed 2 Equality, 2008, online). This paper will analyze several inequalities exist on the workplace with the use of real facts for concentrating on gender, age and race, and demonstrate the role of the participants within employments relations by discussing the responses from the state, employers and unions.

Marx and Engels’ The Communist Manifesto states, “The first step in the revolution by the working class, is to raise the proletariat to the position of ruling class, to win the battle of democracy” (1888:32). Marx predicted that once proletariats had seized power, the state would abolish capitalism through collective ownership, taking economic control away from the free market and subsequently liberating society from alienation and oppression. This would give rise to a socialist society of equality, ultimately leading to communism. This essay discusses the strengths and limitations of democratic socialism in achieving Marxist socialism. In the UK democratic socialism has bought about

Today world is continually changing, likewise with workers’ needs and environments; they tend to change in their value too. Workers want to have self-respect from other, as well as their basic necessities of life. As for managers, they have to fulfill workers need for higher performance and to fight ever-growing competition. In other words, workers are looking for job satisfaction but scientific management view worker as a ‘Rational Economic Man’ who is only motivated by money, so human relation is more relevant in today’s business management.