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Is there a good reason why we allow capital to organise itself and not labour? Adam smith was already commenting on this asymmetry [can't find the quote]. In t
by paulus_magnus2 6y ago
Is there a good reason why we allow capital to organise itself and not labour? Adam smith was already commenting on this asymmetry [can't find the quote].
In the end, labour can "capitalise itself" by having all employees resign, form a body-shop company and apply to service the original employer. In an efficient market these two arrangements should produce the same outcome.
- alexpetralia 6y agoI'd love to read further analysis on this (by Smith himself perhaps) if you can find it!
- Hokusai 6y ago> Is there a good reason why we allow capital to organise itself and not labour? It is a matter of for whom is easier to organize. Capital can organize pretty easily, you may need only half a dozen companies to change a full labor market. But, you will need thousands or tens of thousands of individuals to achieve the same on the labor side. So, you need laws to protect labor if they have to have any chance to organize themselves, or even to promote and finance such activities. Weak or non-existent labor laws creates a power imbalance in favor of capital. So, you only hear their side of the discussion. e.g.: https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-tech-jobs-settlement-20150903-story.html https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-tech-jo...
- dariusj18 6y agoBecause there's always scabs willing to sell out our fellows to earn a buck when they deserve two.
- revicon 6y ago> Is there a good reason why we allow capital to organise itself and not labour Capital is liquid, labor is not. Labor is emotional, gets sick, wants days off, doesn't want to work under undesirable conditions, etc. Capital doesn't have opinions, doesn't need to have elections and votes.