At the core economic development lies the creation of nature itself - the division of functions between people, based on their gender, age, physical, physiological and other characteristics. The mechanism of economic cooperation assumes that some group or individual focuses on performing a strictly defined type of work, while others are engaged in other types of activities.
There are several definitions of the division of labor. Here are just a few of them.
Division of labor is historical process isolation, consolidation, modification of certain types of activities that take place in social forms differentiation and implementation various types labor activity. The division of labor in society is constantly changing, and the system of various types of labor activity itself is becoming more and more complex, as the labor process itself becomes more complex and deepening.
The division of labor is the principle of organizing production in an economy, according to which an individual is engaged in the production of a separate good. Thanks to the action of this principle, with a limited amount of resources, people can receive much more benefits than if everyone provided themselves with everything they need.
There is also a distinction between division of labor in a broad and narrow sense.
IN in a broad sense division of labor is a system of different types of labor, production functions, occupations in general or their combinations that are different in their characteristics and simultaneously interact with each other, as well as a system public relations between them.
In a narrow sense, the division of labor is the division of labor as human activity in its social essence, which, unlike specialization, is a historically transitory social relationship. Specialization of labor is the division of types of labor by subject, which directly expresses the progress of the productive forces and contributes to it. The division of labor historically inevitably grows into a class division.
Due to the fact that members of society began to specialize in the production of certain goods, professions appeared in society - separate types of activities related to the production of any good.
But the division of labor does not at all mean that in our imaginary society one person will be engaged in one type of production. It may turn out that several people will have to do a separate species production, or so that one person will be engaged in the production of several goods.
Why? It’s all about the relationship between the size of the population’s need for a particular good and labor productivity separate profession. If one fisherman can catch just enough fish in a day to satisfy all members of society, then there will be just one fisherman in this household. But if one hunter from the mentioned tribe cannot shoot quails for everyone and his work is not enough to satisfy the needs of all members of the household for quails, then several people will go hunting at once.
Thus, the degree of "division" of labor depends on the size of society. For a certain population size (that is, for a certain composition and size of needs), there is its own optimal structure of occupations, in which the product produced by different producers will be just enough for all members, and all products will be produced at the lowest possible cost. As the population increases, this optimal structure of occupations will change: the number of producers of those goods that were already produced by an individual will increase, and those types of production that were previously entrusted to one person will be entrusted to different people.
In the history of the economy, the process of division of labor went through several stages, differing in the degree of specialization of individual members of society in the production of one or another good.
The division of labor is usually divided into several types depending on the characteristics by which it is carried out.
The natural division of labor is the process of separating types of labor activity according to gender and age.
This division of labor is called natural because its character stems from the very nature of man, from the divisions of functions that each of us must perform due to our physical, intellectual and spiritual merits.
The technical division of labor is determined by the nature of the means of production used, primarily equipment and technology.
Let us consider an elementary example illustrating the development of this type of division of labor. When a person had a simple needle and thread for sewing, this tool imposed a certain system of labor organization and required a large number of employed workers. When the sewing machine replaced the needle, a different organization of labor for people engaged in this type of activity was required. As a result, they were forced to look for other areas of their work. Here, the very replacement of hand tools with a mechanism required changes in the existing system of division of labor.
Consequently, the emergence of new types of equipment, technologies, raw materials, materials and their use in the production process dictates a new division of labor.
Social division of labor is the natural and technical division of labor, taken in their interrelation and in unity with economic factors, under the influence of which the separation and differentiation of various types of labor activity occurs.
The concept of social division of labor includes the natural and technical division of labor due to the fact that any type of activity cannot be carried out outside of humans and outside of material technical means, which are used by people in the production process. It is determined by the socio-economic conditions of production.
In addition, the social division of labor includes two more subtypes: sectoral and territorial. The sectoral division of labor is predetermined by the conditions of production, the nature of the raw materials used, technology, equipment and the product produced. Territorial division of labor is the spatial distribution of various types of labor activities. Its development is determined both by differences in natural and climatic conditions and by economic factors.
By geographical division of labor we mean the spatial form of the social division of labor. Prerequisite geographical division of labor is to different countries(or regions) worked for each other so that the result of labor was transported from one place to another, so that there was thus a gap between the place of production and the place of consumption.
In the conditions of a commodity society, the geographical division of labor necessarily presupposes the transfer of products from farm to farm, that is, exchange, trade, but exchange in these conditions is only a sign for “recognizing” the presence of a geographical division of labor, but not its “essence.”
There are three forms of social division of labor:
1. General division labor is characterized by the isolation of large types (spheres) of activity, which differ from each other in the form of the product.
2. Private division of labor is the process of separating individual industries within large types of production.
3. Unit division labor characterizes the separation of the production of individual components of finished products, as well as the separation of individual technological operations.
The forms of manifestation of the social division of labor include differentiation, specialization, universalization and diversification.
Differentiation consists in the process of separating individual industries, determined by the specifics of the means of production, technology and labor used. In other words, it is a process of dismemberment social production for more and more new types of activities. For example, previously a commodity producer was engaged not only in the production of any goods, but also in their sale. Now he has focused all his attention on the production of goods, while their implementation is carried out by another, completely independent economic entity. Thus, a single economic activity was differentiated into its two varieties, each of which functionally already existed within this unity.
Specialization is based on differentiation, but it develops on the basis of concentrating efforts on a narrow range of products. Specialization, as it were, consolidates and deepens the process of differentiation. In the example given earlier, production was separated from sales. Let’s assume that a commodity manufacturer produced various types of furniture, but later decided to concentrate its efforts on producing only bedroom sets. The commodity producer did not abandon the production of furniture, but reorganized production based on the replacement of universal tools with specialized ones; the workforce is also selected for the benefit of experience and knowledge in that specialized field of activity. Of course, there are many conventions and transitional states here, but it is still necessary to distinguish between these two concepts - differentiation and specialization.
Universalization is the antithesis of specialization. It is based on the production and sale of a wide range of goods and services. An example is the production of all types and types of furniture and even the production of kitchen utensils. An analogue of such production in trade can be a department store.
Diversification is the expansion of the range of products. This is achieved in two ways. The first is market diversification. It is characterized by an expansion of the range of manufactured goods that are already produced by other enterprises. The second way is production diversification, which is directly related to scientific and technological progress, with the emergence of qualitatively new goods and technologies.
Within the framework of production diversification, one should distinguish between: technological, detail and product diversification.
The basis of economic development is the creation of nature itself - the division of functions between people, based on their gender, age, physical, physiological and other characteristics. But man was able to take a qualitative step forward and move from the natural division of functions to the division of labor, which became the basis of the economy and socio-economic progress. The mechanism of economic cooperation between people assumes that some group or individual focuses on performing a strictly specific type of work, while others are engaged in other types of activities.
The concept of "division of labor"
If you pay attention to the isolation of the types of activities that are performed by each member of society, then you can see that all people, by the nature of their occupations, activities, functions performed, are isolated in one way or another from each other. This isolation is the division of labor. Consequently, the division of labor is a historical process of separation, consolidation, modification of individual types of activity, which occurs in social forms of differentiation and implementation of various types of labor activity.
Now we know that in our lives we are doomed to perform only certain types of activities, while collectively they represent a “boundless sea” for freely choosing the method and direction of our “swimming”. But are we really so free if our activities are narrowly focused? Why does it happen that, while performing only a rather narrow and specific type of activity, we have all the necessary benefits that are in no way connected or are connected very conditionally with our work activity? After some reflection, one can come to the conclusion that people have everything (or almost everything) they need only because they exchange the results of their work activities.
The division of labor in society is constantly changing, and the system of various types of labor activity itself is becoming more and more complex, as the labor process itself becomes more complex and deepening.
By concentrating efforts on the production of any one thing and exchanging the products of his labor for the products of the labor of other people, a person soon discovered that this saves him time and effort, since the labor productivity of all participants in the exchange of goods increases. And therefore launched into ancient times the mechanism for expanding and deepening the division of labor works properly to this day, helping people make the most efficient use of available resources and receive the greatest benefit.
The separation of various types of labor activity creates conditions for each participant in the production process to achieve high skill in their chosen business, which ensures a further improvement in the quality of manufactured products and an increase in their output.
Productivity and labor intensity
We can conclude that a commodity is a product of labor intended for exchange in order to satisfy social needs, i.e. the needs not of the commodity producer himself, but of any member of society. As already noted, any product has exchange value, or the ability to be exchanged in a certain proportion for other goods. However, all goods enter into exchange only because they can satisfy one or another need. This is the value of the good acquired by one or another economic entity.
Trade and commodity circulation
Initially, people entered into simple commodity exchange, or such exchange relationships in which the sale and purchase of goods coincided in time and occurred without the participation of money. The form of such commodity exchange has next view: T (product) - T (product). As a result of the development of commodity exchange, more and more new opportunities opened up for the isolation of types of activities, because the guarantee of obtaining missing goods or products, the production of which the commodity producer consciously refused, increased. In the process of development of commodity relations, commodity exchange underwent significant transformations until it was replaced by commodity circulation, which is based on money - a universal means of purchasing that has the ability to be exchanged for any product.
With the emergence of money, exchange was divided into two opposite and complementary acts: sale and purchase. This created conditions that allowed an intermediary merchant to join in the exchange. As a result, a new major division of labor occurred (previously there was a separation of hunting from agriculture, then crafts from agriculture) - the separation of trade into a special large type of economic activity. Thus, commodity circulation is an exchange relationship that is mediated by the monetary equivalent. It has the following form: T (product) - D (money) - T (product).
Types of division of labor
For general idea division of labor systems, we will characterize its various types.
Natural division of labor
Historically, the natural division of labor appeared first. The natural division of labor is the process of separating types of labor activity according to gender and age. This division of labor played a decisive role at the dawn of human society: between men and women, between teenagers, adults and old people.
This division of labor is called natural because its character stems from the very nature of man, from the differentiation of functions that each of us must perform due to our physical, intellectual and spiritual merits. We must not forget that initially each of us is most naturally adapted to perform certain types of activities. Or, as the philosopher Grigory Skovoroda said, the “affinity” of each person for a certain type of activity. So whatever type of division of labor we consider, we must remember that, visibly or invisibly, the natural division of labor is always present in it. The natural moment manifests itself most forcefully in each person’s search for ways, forms and means of self-realization, which often leads not only to a change of place of work, but also a change in the type of work activity. However, this, in turn, depends on the presence of freedom of choice of work activity, which is predetermined not only by personal factors, but also by economic, social, cultural, spiritual and political conditions of human life and society.
No socio-economic system, no matter how much progress it has achieved, can and should not abandon the natural division of labor, especially in relation to women's labor. It cannot be associated with those types of work activities that can harm a woman’s health and affect a new generation of people. Otherwise, society will suffer in the future not only colossal economic, but also moral and ethical losses, deterioration of the genetic fund of the nation.
Technical division of labor
Another type of division of labor is its technical division. The technical division of labor is a differentiation of people’s labor activity that is predetermined by the very nature of the means of production used, primarily equipment and technology. Let us consider an elementary example illustrating the development of this type of division of labor. When a person had a simple needle and thread for sewing, this tool imposed a certain system of labor organization and required a large number of employed workers. When the sewing machine replaced the needle, a different organization of labor was required, as a result of which a significant number of people engaged in this type of activity were released. As a result, they were forced to look for other areas of application of their labor. Here, the very replacement of a hand tool (a needle) with a mechanism (a sewing machine) required changes in the existing system of division of labor.
Consequently, the emergence of new types of equipment, technologies, raw materials, materials and their use in the production process dictates a new division of labor. Just as the natural division of labor is initially already imposed by the very nature of man, so the technical division of labor is imposed by the very nature of the new technical means, means of production, that have appeared.
Social division of labor
Finally, it is necessary to dwell on the social division of labor, which represents the natural and technical division of labor, taken in their interaction and in unity with economic factors (costs, prices, profits, demand, supply, taxes, etc.), under the influence of which occurs separation, differentiation of various types of labor activity. The concept of social division of labor includes the natural and technical division of labor due to the fact that any type of activity cannot be carried out outside of humans (natural division of labor) and outside of the material and technical means (technical division of labor) that are used by people in the production process. In production activities, people use either outdated or new technology, but in both cases it will impose a corresponding system of technical division of labor.
As for the social division of labor, we can say that it is predetermined by the socio-economic conditions of production. For example, farmers, having certain land plots, are engaged in both crop production and animal husbandry. However, the accumulated experience and economic calculations suggest that if some of them specialize mainly in growing and preparing feed, and others will only engage in fattening animals, then production costs will be significantly reduced for both. Over time, it turns out that savings on production costs can be achieved by separately engaging in meat and dairy farming. Thus, there is a separation of crop production from livestock farming, and then within livestock farming there is a division of labor into meat and dairy areas.
Historically, the division of labor between animal husbandry and crop production initially occurred under the direct influence of natural and climatic conditions. The difference in them precisely ensured lower costs in both cases. Both industries benefited from sharing the results of their activities. It should be noted that in conditions of market relations, the division of labor is decisively determined by economic feasibility, obtaining additional benefits, income, cost reduction, etc.
Sectoral and territorial division of labor
Within the framework of the social division of labor, it is necessary to distinguish between the sectoral and territorial division of labor. The sectoral division of labor is predetermined by the conditions of production, the nature of the raw materials used, technology, equipment and the product produced. The territorial division of labor is characterized by the spatial distribution of various types of labor activity. Its development is determined both by differences in natural and climatic conditions and by economic factors. With the development of productive forces, transport, and communications, economic factors play a predominant role. However, the development of the mining and agricultural sectors is dictated by natural factors. Varieties of territorial division of labor are district, regional and international division of labor. But neither the sectoral nor the territorial division of labor can exist outside of each other.
General, particular and individual division of labor
From the point of view of coverage, degree of independence, as well as technical, technological and organizational-economic relationships between various types of production in the social division of labor, it is important to distinguish its three forms: general, private and individual. The general division of labor is characterized by the separation of large types (spheres) of activity, which differ from each other in the form of the product. This includes the identification of pastoral tribes, i.e. separation of animal husbandry from agriculture, crafts from agriculture (later - industry and agriculture), separation of trade from industry. In the 20th century there was a separation and isolation of such large types of activities as services, scientific production, public utilities, the agro-industrial complex, and the credit and financial sector.
Private division of labor is the process of separating individual industries within large types of production. It is characterized by the production of finished homogeneous or similar products, united by technical and technological unity. The private division of labor includes both individual industries and sub-industries and individual industries. For example, within the industry we can name such industries as mechanical engineering, metallurgy, mining, which in turn include a number of sub-sectors. Thus, in mechanical engineering there are more than seventy sub-sectors and industries, including such as machine tool building, transport engineering, electrical and electronic industries. This distinction is also typical for all the other large types of production listed above.
A single division of labor characterizes the separation of the production of individual components of finished products, as well as the separation of individual technological operations. This includes part-by-piece, unit-by-unit (production of parts, assemblies, components) and operational (technological operations for physical, electrophysical, electrochemical processing) division of labor. A single division of labor usually takes place within individual enterprises.
Historically, the development trend of the social division of labor was determined by the transition from general division to private division and from private to individual division of labor. In this regard, we can say that in its development the social division of labor went through three stages, at each of which the determining factor was the general division of labor, then the private, then the individual. However, apparently, this scheme for the development of the social division of labor should not be taken as an absolute. It will be shown below that each subsequent type of division of labor can become the initial basis for the development of historically previous types of division of labor.
Forms of manifestation of the division of labor
The forms of manifestation of the social division of labor include differentiation, specialization, universalization and diversification.
Differentiation
Differentiation consists in the process of separation, “spin-off” of individual industries, determined by the specifics of the means of production, technology and labor used. In other words, this is the process of dividing social production into more and more new types of activities. For example, previously a commodity producer was engaged not only in the production of any goods, but also in their sale. Now he has focused all his attention on the production of goods, while their implementation is carried out by another, completely independent economic entity. Thus, a single economic activity was differentiated into its two varieties, each of which functionally already existed within this unity.
Specialization
Specialization should be distinguished from differentiation. Specialization is based on differentiation, but it develops on the basis of concentrating efforts on a narrow range of products. Specialization, as it were, consolidates and deepens the process of differentiation. In the above example, production was separated from sales (trade). Let’s assume that a commodity manufacturer produced various types of furniture, but later decided to concentrate its efforts on producing only bedroom sets. The commodity producer has not abandoned the production of furniture, but is reorganizing production based on the replacement of universal tools with specialized ones; the workforce is also selected for the benefit of experience and knowledge in that specialized field of activity. Of course, there are many conventions and transitional states here, but it is still necessary to distinguish between these two concepts - differentiation and specialization.
Universalization
Universalization is the antithesis of specialization. It is based on the production or sale of a wide range of goods and services. An example would be the production of all types and types of furniture and even the production of kitchen utensils and cutlery at one enterprise. An analogue of such production in trade can be a department store.
As for the concentration of production, it finds its technical manifestation in the ever-increasing concentration of means of production (machines, equipment, people, raw materials) and labor within one enterprise. However, the direction of development of production depends on the nature of their concentration: either it will follow the path of universalization, or specialization. This is due to the degree of homogeneity of equipment and the technologies and raw materials used, and therefore the labor force.
Diversification
The diversification of production deserves special attention. Diversification should be understood as expanding the range of products. This is achieved in two ways. The first is market diversification. It is characterized by an expansion of the range of manufactured goods that are already produced by other enterprises. Moreover, quite often the process of such diversification is accompanied by an acquisition or merger with enterprises that produce the same products. The main thing is that in this case, as a rule, there is no enrichment of the range of goods offered to the buyer.
The second way is production diversification, which is directly related to scientific and technological progress (STP), with the emergence of qualitatively new goods and technologies. This type of diversification, in contrast to market diversification, creates and satisfies previously non-existent needs or satisfies existing needs with a new product or service. As a rule, production diversification is closely related to existing production in the region. this enterprise and grows organically from it.
Within the framework of production diversification, one should distinguish between technological, detail and product diversification. Product diversification is developing on the most large scale. Thus, using the same technological operations, parts, assemblies, and components, it is possible to assemble finished products and products that are very diverse in their functional purpose. But this becomes possible only in the context of the expansion of the process of diversification of the production of components of finished products. It was production diversification, as a consequence of scientific and technical progress, that led to a change in the development trends of the general, private and individual division of labor.
Modern trends in the development of division of labor
Structural and technological commonality of products
So, let's consider modern trends in the development of the social division of labor. First of all, we note that under the influence of scientific and technological progress, the design and technological commonality of manufactured types of products, primarily assemblies, parts, and components, is increasingly becoming apparent. Thus, modern equipment and vehicles consist of approximately 60-75% of similar or identical components and parts. This is a consequence of detail and technological diversification.
The diversification of social production could not but affect sectoral differentiation. In conditions of unprecedented rates of product diversification, the principle of industry differentiation came into conflict with the trends in the social division of labor and the requirements of scientific and technical progress.
The increasing structural and technological commonality of the ever-increasing mass of various types of products gives rise to a complex and contradictory process of real separation of the production of finished products and their components. The fact is that many types of products from the same economic sector are structurally incompatible with each other in terms of units, components, parts and components, while products from other industries have a lot of structurally common elements with them. For example, there is nothing in common between cars and trucks, except for the principles of their operation and the names of components and parts, while the latter have a lot of identical components with products of the corresponding class of road-building, tractor, and agricultural machinery.
The development of a single division into a particular one
Modern production of component products, apparently, is at the stage of its development at which their production has gone beyond the boundaries of individual enterprises and has already reached isolation into separate branches of industry. The exit of the individual division of labor beyond the boundaries of the enterprise is certainly and objectively associated with the development of another trend - the development of the individual division of labor into a private one. As long as the dedicated specialized production of component products remains closely connected with one final product, we can speak, however, with certain and sometimes significant deviations, about a single division of labor. When does such production involve a complex of technical, technological, organizational, economic ties for the production of a number of final products, then it acquires independent, equal, and sometimes even predetermining significance in relation to the choice of directions for the development of industries producing finished products.
The development of detailed and technological specialization of production within society creates the basis for the transition from simple cooperation (based on the division of labor by type, type, type of product) to complex cooperation, based on the unification of detailed and technologically highly specialized production within industrial complexes, rather than individual enterprises, associations . As separate production facilities for the production of units, parts, and components grow and their structural and technological commonality is revealed, identical production facilities are being integrated. This determines the formation of independent production and industries for the production of inter-industry products.
The economic content of these processes lies in the fact that the strict attachment of a composite component to a certain type of finished product indicates the prevailing role of the use value of a partial product and, on the contrary, the use of a partial product in a wide range of products indicates the leading role of value. We can say that the more use value predominates in exchange, the wider the scale of the individual division of labor; the more often and more urgently exchange value manifests itself, the more obvious is the development of the private division of labor. Therefore, with the development of the individual division of labor into private, an increasingly large part of the partial products acquires independent meaning as a commodity, which indicates a new stage in the development of commodity production and market relations.
The increasing role of the private division of labor in the process of further development of industrial production is manifested, on the one hand, in the formation of intersectoral production for the production of structurally and technologically related intermediate products, and on the other, in the integration of related but separate industries and industries into industrial complexes.
Particular division of labor as the basis for its general division
The considered trend of private division of labor, of course, does not exclude its development in the traditional direction - within the framework of the division of labor. At the same time, various types of labor activity, emerging, transforming and separating, thereby create the basis for the formation of new large types of economic activity. Such new formations include public utilities, the agro-industrial complex (AIC), infrastructure, and scientific production. These new large spheres social production were formed on a qualitative basis new basis- by integrating individual industries, i.e. based on the private division of labor. Thus, the agro-industrial complex was formed on the basis of industries serving agriculture and agricultural production. The public utilities integrated heat supply, energy supply, and gas services. Consequently, what is happening at the present time is not the “growing” of the private division of labor from the general, but, on the contrary, the formation of a general division of labor on the basis of the private.
Having examined various aspects of the division of labor, I would like to draw attention to the fact that the more extensive and deeper the division of labor, the more developed productive forces a society has. A. Smith called the division of labor the leading force of economic development. It personifies the social productive force that arises from the form of labor organization and production management. Sometimes this productive force costs little to society, but gives enormous returns, expressed in the growth of social productivity.
Trends in the development of the division of labor as a general form of existence of social production make it possible to determine the most important directions for improving economic relations. Consequently, economic relations represent the social shell of the existence and development of the division of labor. Any changes in the system of division of labor immediately affect the system of relations between economic entities: economic ties between some of them cease, while between others, on the contrary, they arise. So, the social division of labor and its socialization reflect both material and technical (productive forces) and socio-economic ( relations of production) aspects of social production.
Socialization of labor and production
The expansion and deepening of the division of labor presupposes the mutual conditionality and predetermination of separate types of activities and makes it impossible for them to exist without each other. In this regard, we can conclude that with the process of deepening and expanding the division of labor, the process of its socialization is simultaneously unfolding. The socialization of labor is the process of drawing various types of labor activity, connected either by the exchange of direct labor activity, or by its results or products, into a single social labor process.
The considered types, types of division of labor and forms of their implementation, as well as trends in its development, mark the process of uniting disparate spheres and subjects of economic activity into a single socialized production process. In the course of technical and socio-economic progress, various types of activities are combined, because most modern goods are the result of the activities of a mass of people, some of whom are engaged in the production individual parts, others - assemblies, third - assemblies, fourth - components, fifth - performing individual technical operations, sixth - assembling and completing finished products. Merger of fragmented production processes of various industries and areas National economy into a single social production process is called the socialization of production.
The socialization of production is the contradictory unity of the socialization of labor and the means of production, which lies in the labor process itself, which presupposes both one or another form of interaction of the total labor force, and one or another socialized form of functioning of the means of production. Therefore, they can complement each other or develop in opposite directions, coming into conflict.
At the same time, in the relations of socialization of the means of production, it is necessary to distinguish between two aspects: the socialization of the means of production as a factor of production, i.e. as the material content of the process of socialization, and as an object of property relations. Therefore, in the socialization of the means of production it is necessary to see both the material factor and socio-economic relations.
The division of labor, its socialization and the socialization of the means of production are closely interconnected and mutually complement each other. The relationship between them is as flexible as the material and technical base of social production itself is changeable, i.e. productive forces, division and socialization of labor, and to what extent forms of ownership are able to evolve in the direction of socialization of the means of production in accordance with the requirements of the development of productive forces.
As in the case of the technical division of labor, the very nature of the means of production used changes both the principle and scale of their interaction, as well as interaction with labor force. Therefore, the socialization of the means of production as productive forces does not depend on the social form of management.
However, it is necessary to recognize that the means of production can function outside of economic relations, the prevailing property relations, and therefore the socialization of the means of production as productive forces is influenced by the social form of their functioning.
Thus, before the advent of machine production, individual property, individual capital, was dominant, which then, thanks to its own accumulation, moved to manufacturing production (manufacturing division of labor). However, the emergence of machines and their use in production opened the way to a qualitatively new division of labor and the socialization of production based on the unification of isolated capitals into social capital in the form of joint-stock companies. Despite the private nature of this corporate form of ownership, in its mode of functioning it acts as a social integrated force, as social capital. Thus, private capital, having failed to ensure the appropriate division of labor and the socialization of production, was forced to transform into a social form.
Understanding the process of socialization of the means of production in its material, technical and social aspects in unity with the socialization of labor allows us to consider the dynamics of social production as a first approximation. The first impulse in its development comes from the productive forces, but in reality its transformation (as well as the economic use and functioning of new productive forces) begins to take place only with the onset of changes in the system of economic relations.
Production loses its private character and becomes a social process due to the absolute dependence of producers on each other, when the means of production, even if they are the property of individuals, act as public due to their relationship to production. Likewise, labor in individual enterprises turns out to be truly socialized within the framework of a single production process. In this regard, I would like to draw attention to the following points of the socialization of the means of production and labor as components of a single process of socialization of production.
Socialization of the means of production can take place in the following forms. Firstly, through the concentration of capital, i.e. increasing its size by accumulating investment in the production of part of the profit.
Secondly, based on the centralization of capital, i.e. its growth through the absorption of weak competitors or the merger of relatively equivalent capitals into a single whole. Acquisition and merger processes lead to the formation of oligopolistic and monopoly capital, which cannot function outside of government supervision, and certain conditions it can expect nationalization.
However, a much larger scale of real socialization of the means of production is represented by corporate capital with its system of participation in the financial control of branches, branches, subsidiaries and grandchild companies, associated enterprises, as well as tens of thousands of “independent” enterprises that are tightly tied technologically, technically, organizationally, economically to corporate capital through a system of agreements on scientific, technical and production cooperation. This entire set, it would seem, is legally independent enterprises functions as a single whole, as social capital in a single corporate reproduction process.
At the same time, far from any socialization of the means of production, the growth of capital personifies the socialization of labor and production. Formally, there may be the appearance of socialization of the means of production and labor, while they function in completely unrelated industries. This can also be observed within the framework of corporate capital, when it acts as a conglomerate, i.e. associations of diverse industries and services that represent disparate types of economic activity. There is no cooperation of labor between individual units of production or exchange of results of economic activity.
It is necessary to distinguish between direct (direct) and indirect (indirect) socialization of labor. At the same time, its cooperation is important, which can be realized in the form of a direct exchange of labor activity within a separate economic unit (enterprise) and in the form of an exchange of the results of labor activity based on the implementation of production cooperation in the manufacture of certain types of products or by-products. In the latter case, the labor of workers of individual enterprises acts as a particle of the labor of collective workers participating in cooperation in the production of certain products. As a result, the labor of all participants in production acquires the social character of an aggregate worker in a given area of production. Under the conditions of scientific and technical progress, a huge mass of enterprises are drawn into a single intersectoral production process based on truly cooperative labor, even if the latter is mediated by commodity-money relations.
Thus, the need for constant exchange of the fruits of specialized labor predetermines the cooperative nature of relationships in the production of goods and services. Production cooperation is the combination of separated production operations or separate production of components and parts necessary for the manufacture of final products into a single production process.
conclusions
1. The division of labor is the historical process of separating various types of labor activity into independent or interconnected production, while the socialization of labor is aimed at drawing various types of labor activity directly or indirectly by exchange into a single social production process.
2. Division of labor is of three types: natural, technical and social. The natural division of labor is predetermined by the separation of labor activities according to gender and age, the technical division is determined by the nature of the equipment and technology used, the social division of labor is determined by the nature of economic relations expressed in prices and costs, supply and demand, etc.
3. Within the framework of the social division of labor, it is necessary to distinguish between individual, private and general division of labor. The first characterizes the division of labor within an enterprise, the second - within individual industries, the third - within the boundaries of large spheres of social production.
4. The forms of manifestation of the division of labor are differentiation, specialization, universalization and diversification. Differentiation expresses any process of separating certain types of production activities. Specialization expresses a type of differentiation that is characterized by the concentration of means of production and labor on the production of a narrow range of products, while universalization, on the contrary, is accompanied by the concentration of means of production and labor in order to produce a wide range of products. Diversification refers to the expansion of the company's range of products.
5. The division of labor, appearing in various types and forms of its manifestation, is a determining prerequisite for the development of commodity production and market relations, since the concentration of labor efforts on the production of a narrow range of products or on certain types of it forces commodity producers to enter into exchange relations in order to obtain what they lack good
The basis of economic development is the creation of nature itself - the division of functions between people, based on their gender, age, physical, physiological and other characteristics. The mechanism of economic cooperation assumes that some group or individual focuses on performing a strictly defined type of work, while others are engaged in other types of activities.
There are several definitions of the division of labor. Here are just a few of them.
Division of labor is a historical process of separation, consolidation, modification of individual types of activity, which occurs in social forms of differentiation and implementation of various types of labor activity. The division of labor in society is constantly changing, and the system of various types of labor activity itself is becoming more and more complex, as the labor process itself becomes more complex and deepening.
Division of labor (or specialization) is the principle of organizing production in an economy, according to which an individual is engaged in the production of a separate good. Thanks to the action of this principle, with a limited amount of resources, people can receive much more benefits than if everyone provided themselves with everything they need.
There is also a distinction between the division of labor in the broad and narrow sense (according to K. Marx).
In a broad sense, the division of labor is a system of different types of labor, production functions, occupations in general or their combinations that are different in their characteristics and simultaneously interact with each other, as well as a system of social relations between them. The empirical diversity of occupations is considered by economic statistics, labor economics, branch economics, demography, etc. Territorial, including international, division of labor is described economic geography. To determine the relationship between various production functions from the point of view of their material result, K. Marx preferred to use the term “distribution of labor.”
In a narrow sense, the division of labor is the social division of labor as a human activity in its social essence, which, unlike specialization, is a historically transitory social relationship. Specialization of labor is the division of types of labor by subject, which directly expresses the progress of the productive forces and contributes to it. The diversity of such species corresponds to the degree of human exploration of nature and grows with its development. However, in class formations, specialization is not carried out as a specialization of integral activities, since it itself is influenced by the social division of labor. The latter dismembers human activity into such partial functions and operations, each of which in itself no longer has the nature of activity and does not act as a way for a person to reproduce it social relations, his culture, his spiritual wealth and himself as an individual. These partial functions are devoid of their own meaning and logic; their necessity appears only as demands placed on them from the outside by the system of division of labor. This is the division of material and spiritual (mental and physical), executive and managerial labor, practical and ideological functions, etc. An expression of the social division of labor is the identification as separate spheres of material production, science, art, etc., as well as the dismemberment of them themselves. The division of labor historically inevitably grows into a class division.
Due to the fact that members of society began to specialize in the production of certain goods, professions appeared in society - separate types of activities related to the production of any good.
The division of labor in an organization refers to the division of people's activities in the process of joint work.
The division of labor involves the specialization of individual performers to perform a certain part collaboration, which cannot be accomplished without clear coordination of the actions of individual workers or their groups.
The division of labor is characterized by qualitative and quantitative characteristics. Division of labor according to quality This feature involves separating types of work according to their complexity. Performing such work requires special knowledge and practical skills. Division of labor according to quantitative the attribute ensures the establishment of a certain proportionality between qualitatively different types of labor. The combination of these characteristics largely determines the organization of work as a whole.
Ensuring a rational division of labor at the enterprise within the framework of one or another labor collective(team, site, workshop, enterprise) is one of the important areas of improving labor organization. The choice of forms of division largely determines the layout and equipment of workplaces, their maintenance, methods and techniques of labor, its rationing, payment and provision of favorable production conditions. The division of labor in an enterprise, in a workshop, determines the quantitative and qualitative proportions between individual types of labor, the selection and placement of workers in the production process, their training and advanced training.
Correctly chosen forms of division of labor and its cooperation make it possible to ensure rational workload of workers, clear coordination and synchronicity in their work, and reduce time loss and equipment downtime. Ultimately, the amount of labor costs per unit of production and, consequently, the level of labor productivity depend on the forms of division of labor. This is the economic essence of the rational division of labor.
At the same time, the social aspect of the scientifically based division of labor plays a great role. The correct choice of forms of division of labor helps to increase the content of labor, which ensures workers’ satisfaction with their work, the development of collectivism and interchangeability, increased responsibility for the results of collective work, and the strengthening of labor discipline.
At enterprises, the following types of division of labor are distinguished: technological, functional, professional and qualification.
Technological division of labor involves the separation of groups of workers on the basis of their performance of technologically homogeneous work in individual phases, types of work and operations (at engineering and metalworking enterprises - foundry, forging, machining, assembly and other work; at mining enterprises - mining preparation and cleaning work; at enterprises of worsted production of the textile industry - scattering, opening, carding, tape, roving, spinning, twisting, winding, sizing, weaving and other works). Within technological separation of labor in relation to certain types of work, for example assembly work, depending on the degree of fragmentation of labor processes, operational, detail and subject division of labor is distinguished.
The technological division of labor largely determines the functional, professional and qualification division labor at the enterprise. It allows you to determine the need for workers by profession and specialty, and the level of specialization of their labor.
Functional division of labor varies by role separate groups workers in the production process. Based on this feature, there are primarily two large groups workers - main and service (auxiliary). Each of these groups is divided into functional subgroups (for example, a group of service workers - into subgroups of those engaged in repair, adjustment, instrumental, loading and unloading work, etc.).
Ensuring at enterprises the correct ratio of the number of main and auxiliary workers on the basis of a rational functional division of their labor, and a significant improvement in the organization of labor of service workers are important reserves for increasing labor productivity in industry.
Professional The division of labor is carried out depending on the professional specialization of workers and involves performing work in a particular profession (specialty) at the workplace. Based on the volume of each type of work, it is possible to determine the need for workers by profession for a site, workshop, production, enterprise and association as a whole.
Qualification The division of labor is determined by varying complexity, requiring a certain level of knowledge and experience of workers. For each profession, the composition of operations or work is established varying degrees difficulties that are grouped according to assigned working tariff categories.
The process of improving the division of labor must be continuous, taking into account constantly changing production conditions, contributing to the achievement of the best performance indicators.
The development of measures to improve the division of labor is usually preceded by a quantitative assessment of the division of labor. To do this, the division of labor coefficient is calculated ( Kr.t), recommended by the Labor Research Institute. It characterizes the degree of specialization of workers and is calculated taking into account the time they spent performing functions corresponding to their qualifications and provided for by production tasks, according to the formula
TO r.t. =1 - /t cm *np (1)
where is the time spent on performing functions not provided for in the tariff and qualification reference book for workers in a given profession, min;
Time spent on performing functions not provided for in the technological documentation, min;
tcm - shift duration, min;
n.p.- total (on payroll) number of workers at the enterprise;
Total losses of working time across the enterprise associated with downtime due to technical and organizational reasons, as well as violations of labor discipline.
From the above formula it is clear that the less time spent on performing an operation (works) not provided for in the tariff and qualification reference book, standardization or technological documentation, the more numeric value coefficient and, consequently, the more rational the division of labor with its accepted cooperation.
In the conditions of any enterprise there are opportunities to choose the most rational forms of division of labor. In each case, the choice should be made on the basis of a comprehensive analysis of the specifics of production, the nature of the work performed, requirements for their quality, the degree of workload of workers and a number of other factors.
In modern conditions, increasing the efficiency of labor by improving its division should be carried out on the basis of a wider combination of professions, expanding the scope of application of multi-machine (multi-unit) services, and further development of the collective (team) form of organizing workers' labor.
The search and implementation of new forms of division of labor require their mandatory experimental testing. Only in practice can one finally establish the effectiveness of one or another form of division of labor and identify both its positive and negative aspects.
The main direction for improving the division of labor is choosing the best option for each specific site, taking into account economic, technical, technological, psychophysiological and social requirements.
The main economic requirement for the optimal division of labor is to ensure production output in given volumes and High Quality at the lowest labor, material and financial costs.
Technical and technological requirements provide for the execution of each element of work by the appropriate performer on this equipment in the prescribed manner work time. These requirements decisively determine the technological, functional, professional and qualification division of labor.
Psychophysiological requirements are aimed at preventing overwork of workers due to heavy physical exertion, nervous tension, impoverishment of work content, monotony or physical inactivity (insufficient physical activity), which often leads to premature fatigue and decreased productivity.
Social requirements require the presence of creative elements in the work, increasing the content and attractiveness of work.
As a rule, these requirements are not met by a single organizational solution, so there is a need to choose one option for the division of labor. The complexity of this task lies in its versatility, in the choice of criteria for determining boundaries, the multivariate ways of dividing labor in various types enterprises.
It is known that as a result of the division of labor, specialization of workers occurs, which, on the one hand, ensures a reduction in labor costs, and on the other, can impoverish its content, lead to an increase in monotony (after a certain limit) and a decrease in productivity. Increasing the workload of performers does not always mean an increase in the productive operating time of the equipment; the inverse relationship is also possible.
With the establishment of more intense time standards, the required number of performers decreases, but the likelihood of a decrease in the quality of work increases. Providing creative elements as part of the operations performed is often associated with additional time spent per unit of production, but it increases the content and attractiveness of the work, reduces staff turnover, etc.
The choice of the most optimal solution should balance the effects of various factors and ensure the most effective achievement of the production goal. To do this, it is sometimes necessary to conduct special experiments and studies using mathematical methods and computer technology(for selection the best option). However, the economic and social effect of these works should significantly cover the costs of their implementation.
Designing the division of labor in enterprises by making optimal organizational decisions is very effective and is one of the most promising directions improving labor organization.
Division of labor are the most important factors production, which largely determines the forms of labor organization.
Division of labor (or specialization) is the principle of organizing production in an economy, according to which an individual is engaged in the production of a separate good. Thanks to the action of this principle, with a limited amount of resources, people can receive much more benefits than if everyone provided themselves with everything they need.
Division of labor presupposes the specialization of individual performers in performing a certain part of joint work, which cannot be accomplished without clear coordination of the actions of individual workers or their groups.
The division of labor is characterized by qualitative and quantitative characteristics. The division of labor on a qualitative basis presupposes the separation of types of work according to their complexity. Performing such work requires special knowledge and practical skills. The division of labor on a quantitative basis ensures the establishment of a certain proportionality between qualitatively different types of labor. The combination of these characteristics largely determines the organization of work as a whole.
Ensuring a rational division of labor at an enterprise within a particular work team (team, section, workshop, enterprise) is one of the important areas of improving labor organization. The choice of forms of division largely determines the layout and equipment of workplaces, their maintenance, methods and techniques of labor, its rationing, payment and provision of favorable production conditions. The division of labor in an enterprise, in a workshop, determines the quantitative and qualitative proportions between individual types of labor, the selection and placement of workers in the production process, their training and advanced training.
Correctly chosen forms of division of labor and its cooperation make it possible to ensure rational workload of workers, clear coordination and synchronicity in their work, and reduce time loss and equipment downtime. Ultimately, the amount of labor costs per unit of production and, consequently, the level of labor productivity depend on the forms of division of labor. This is the economic essence of the rational division of labor.
The division of labor in society has three types: general, private, individual.
General division of labor is a division on the scale of the entire society into such large spheres as production and non-production, industrial, agricultural, construction, transport, trade, scientific, public administration, etc.
Private division of labor there is a deepening of the process of separation of labor within each sphere and industry into separate specialized sub-sectors and enterprises, organizations.
Unit division of labor means the separation of various types of work within the enterprise:
Firstly, within its structural divisions(workshop, site, team, department);
Secondly, between professional groups workers, within groups – between workers of different qualifications;
Thirdly, the operational division of the labor process, which can deepen to individual labor techniques.
The unit division of labor is divided into forms: technological, functional, professional and qualification.
Technological division of labor is based on the isolation of work on the basis of their technological homogeneity; it can be enlarged and element-by-element, depending on the type of production.
There are four types of technological division of labor: subject-specific, detailed, operational, and by type of work.
With a substantive division of labor, the performer is assigned to perform work related to the manufacture of the finished product. (Used in single production).
Detailed division of labor consists in assigning to workers the production of a finished part of a product - a part.
Operational division of labor is used when the process of manufacturing a part within a given phase is divided into separate operations, each of which is performed by a separate performer. Used in mass production.
Technological division by type of work is used when the above varieties are not suitable, for example, welding, painting work.
Based on the technological division of labor, the work performed and functions are distinguished, i.e. the functional division of labor is determined.
Functional division of labor reflects the isolation of individual groups of workers depending on the production functions they perform.
The following groups are distinguished: employees, workers, junior service personnel, students, security.
Employees are divided into managers, specialists, and other employees (technical performers). Workers are divided into main workers, engaged in the production of main products, and auxiliary workers, performing production maintenance work.
Organizational structure enterprise management is determined by the functional division of labor, ensuring the implementation of the main technological function, the servicing technological function, and the managerial function.
Professional and qualification division of labor consists of dividing workers by profession and specialty and represents the distribution of work depending on its complexity between workers of different qualification groups.
Profession is a type of activity (occupation) of a person who has certain theoretical knowledge and practical skills obtained as a result of professional training.
Specialty – specialization of an employee within a profession.
The level of qualifications of workers is established on the basis of assigning qualification categories to them. The qualification level of managers and specialists is determined by the positions they occupy. Categories are established for specialists.
Division of labor has positive and negative aspects. His economic importance due to increased labor productivity, rapid mastery of professions, and low costs for job creation. From a social and physiological point of view, the consequences of the division of labor can be narrow specialization, impoverishment of the content of labor, monotony, monotony of work, and fatigue.
Designing the division of labor at enterprises by making optimal organizational decisions is very effective and is one of the most promising areas for improving labor organization.
The most important conditions for the effectiveness of the division of labor are: a sufficiently large volume of production and high level his specialization; quite a large number technological equipment; correspondence between the number of operations and jobs; The fragmentation of operations and work should not reach such an extent that time savings on main operations are absorbed by the increased time spent on auxiliary and transport ones.
The basis of economic development is the creation of nature itself - the division of functions between people, based on their gender, age, physical, physiological and other characteristics. The mechanism of economic cooperation assumes that some group or individual focuses on performing a strictly defined type of work, while others are engaged in other types of activities.
There are several definitions of the division of labor. Here are just a few of them.
Division of labor- this is a historical process of isolation, consolidation, modification of certain types of activity, which occurs in social forms of differentiation and implementation of various types of labor activity. The division of labor in society is constantly changing, and the system of various types of labor activity itself is becoming more and more complex, as the labor process itself becomes more complex and deepening.
Division of labor(or specialization) is the principle of organizing production in an economy, according to which an individual is engaged in the production of a separate good. Thanks to the action of this principle, with a limited amount of resources, people can receive much more benefits than if everyone provided themselves with everything they need.
There is also a distinction between the division of labor in the broad and narrow sense (according to K. Marx).
In a broad sense division of labor- this is a system of types of labor, production functions, occupations in general or their combinations that are different in their characteristics and simultaneously interact with each other, as well as a system of social relations between them. The empirical diversity of occupations is considered by economic statistics, labor economics, branch economic sciences, demography, etc. The territorial, including international, division of labor is described by economic geography. To determine the relationship between various production functions from the point of view of their material result, K. Marx preferred to use the term “distribution of labor.”
In the narrow sense division of labor- this is the social division of labor as human activity in its social essence, which, in contrast to specialization, is a historically transitory social relationship. Specialization of labor is the division of types of labor by subject, which directly expresses the progress of the productive forces and contributes to it. The diversity of such species corresponds to the degree of human exploration of nature and grows with its development. However, in class formations, specialization is not carried out as a specialization of integral activities, since it itself is influenced by the social division of labor. The latter divides human activity into such partial functions and operations, each of which in itself no longer has the nature of activity and does not act as a way for a person to reproduce his social relations, his culture, his spiritual wealth and himself as an individual. These partial functions are devoid of their own meaning and logic; their necessity appears only as demands placed on them from the outside by the system of division of labor. This is the division of material and spiritual (mental and physical), executive and managerial labor, practical and ideological functions, etc. An expression of the social division of labor is the separation of material production, science, art, etc. as separate spheres, as well as the division themselves. The division of labor historically inevitably grows into a class division.
Due to the fact that members of society began to specialize in the production of individual goods, professions– individual types of activities related to the production of any good.
But the division of labor does not at all mean that in our imaginary society one person will be engaged in one type of production. It may turn out that several people will have to engage in a particular type of production, or so that one person will be engaged in the production of several goods.
Why? It's all about the relationship between the size of the population's need for a particular good and the labor productivity of a particular profession. If one fisherman can catch just enough fish in a day to satisfy all members of society, then there will be just one fisherman in this household. But if one hunter from the mentioned tribe cannot shoot quails for everyone and his work is not enough to satisfy the needs of all members of the household for quails, then several people will go hunting at once. Or, for example, if one potter can produce so many pots that society cannot consume, then he will have extra time which he can use to produce some other good, such as spoons or plates.
Thus, the degree of "division" of labor depends on the size of society. For a certain population size (that is, for a certain composition and size of needs), there is its own optimal structure of occupations, in which the product produced by different producers will be just enough for all members, and all products will be produced at the lowest possible cost. With an increase in population, this optimal structure of occupations will change, the number of producers of those goods that were already produced by an individual will increase, and those types of production that were previously entrusted to one person will be entrusted to different people.
In the history of the economy, the process of division of labor went through several stages, differing in the degree of specialization of individual members of society in the production of one or another good.
The division of labor is usually divided into several types depending on the characteristics by which it is carried out.
Natural division of labor: the process of separating types of labor activity by gender and age.
Technical division of labor: determined by the nature of the means of production used, primarily equipment and technology.
Social division of labor: natural and technical division of labor, taken in their interaction and in unity with economic factors, under the influence of which the separation and differentiation of various types of labor activity occurs.
In addition, the social division of labor includes 2 more subtypes: sectoral and territorial. Sectoral division of labor is predetermined by the production conditions, the nature of the raw materials used, technology, equipment and the manufactured product. Territorial division of labor is the spatial arrangement of various types of work activities. Its development is determined both by differences in natural and climatic conditions and by economic factors.
Under geographical division of labor we understand the spatial form of the social division of labor. A necessary condition for the geographical division of labor is that different countries (or regions) work for each other, that the result of labor is transported from one place to another, so that there is thus a gap between the place of production and the place of consumption.
In a commodity society, the geographical division of labor necessarily involves the transfer of products from farm to farm, i.e. exchange, trade, but exchange in these conditions is only a sign for “recognizing” the presence of a geographical division of labor, but not its “essence”.
There are 3 forms of social division of labor:
The general division of labor is characterized by the separation of large types (spheres) of activity, which differ from each other in the form of the product.
Private division of labor is the process of separating individual industries within large types of production.
A single division of labor characterizes the separation of the production of individual components of finished products, as well as the separation of individual technological operations.
Differentiation consists in the process of separating individual industries, determined by the specifics of the means of production, technology and labor used.
Specialization is based on differentiation, but it develops on the basis of concentrating efforts on a narrow range of products.
Universalization is the antithesis of specialization. It is based on the production and sale of a wide range of goods and services.
Diversification is the expansion of the range of products.
The first and main statement that A. Smith puts forward, which determines the greatest progress in the development of the productive power of labor and a significant share of the art, skill and intelligence with which it (progress) is directed and applied, is a consequence of the division of labor. The division of labor is the most important and unacceptable condition for the progress of the development of productive forces, the development of the economy of any state, any society. A. Smith leads simplest example the actions of the division of labor in small and large enterprises (manufacture in contemporary society) - the elementary production of pins. A worker who is not trained in this production and does not know how to handle the machines used in it (the impetus for the invention of machines was given precisely by the division of labor) can hardly make one pin a day. When an organization exists in such production, it is necessary to divide the profession into a number of specialties, each of which is a separate occupation. One worker pulls the wire, another straightens it, the third cuts it, the fourth sharpens the end, the fifth grinds it to attach the head, the manufacture of which requires two or three more independent operations, in addition to its attachment, polishing the pin itself, packaging finished products. Thus, labor in the production of pins is divided into a multi-stage series of operations, and depending on the organization of production and the size of the enterprise, they can be performed each separately (one worker - one operation), or combined into 2 - 3 (one worker - 2 - 3 operations ). Using this simple example, A. Smith asserts the undoubted priority of such a division of labor over the work of a single worker. 10 workers produced 48,000 pins per day, while one is capable of high voltage 20 pieces. The division of labor in any craft, no matter how large it is introduced, causes an increase in labor productivity. Further development(up to the present day) production in any sector of the economy was the clearest confirmation of the “discovery” of A. Smith.
