Labour and Wages

Abstract

Labour is the effort, both physical and mental, made by human beings in production. People differ from machines in that: (a) the overall supply of labourers does not depend upon the return to labour; (b) effort is not automatically geared to the reward offered; (c) labour is immobile; (d) labour combines in trade unions. These characteristics have to be taken into account by firms in their attitude to employees and by the government in its employment policy.