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Labor Productivity and Marxist Theory of Labor Value

Alejandro Valle Baeza

División de Posgrado, Facultad de Economía, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

Av. Universidad 3000 Circuito Interior Fac. Economía Edif.. B México 04510 D.F. phone (5255)56222148, fax (5255)56222158, e-mail: valle@servidor.unam.

I am in debt to Ron Baiman and especially to Takao Fujimoto for valuable commentaries to previous versions of this paper; remaining errors are my own responsibility.

Abstract

This paper analyzes the relationship between labor productivity and the Marxist theory of value. I shall define aggregate productivity based on the theory of labor value in order to improve our understanding of several aspects of productivity: a) what change of labor productivity is measuring; b) to rigorously derive the relationship between real wages, productivity and exploitation; and c) to lay the foundations for an international comparison of productivity.

Introduction

This paper analyzes the relationship between labor productivity and the Marxist theory of value. Labor productivity is a notion empirical economists use widely when they develop wage policies or make comparisons between countries, for instance. Theoretical economists: Neoclassical, Keynesians or Radical economists also make use of this notion. In contrast, the Marxist theory of labor value is defended by very few even within the field of Marxism itself. This paper points out that whoever uses the concept of labor productivity, however, is implicitly using the theory of labor value, perhaps in most cases even without knowing. Clarifying this relationship between economic practice and the theory of labor value will certainly benefit both empirical economists and economic theorists.

I shall not attempt to look into the important issue of unproductive labor, a theme of great relevance to our study that has been widely studied above all for its impact on the performance of the rate of profit. Researchs by...