Labor as a factor of production

There are factors without which the concept of production would not make sense, and these are factors that affect the volume of production. Factors of production efficiency are quite diverse, since there are a great many resources for it. There are three main groups of factors: land, labor and capital. Water, forests, fields, minerals, etc., that is, something given by nature or created by man (for example, drained bogs) is the earth.

Labor as a factor of production is also a heterogeneous concept, in a complex meaning the combined efforts of people. Since there are a lot of professions and specialties, and each of them requires specific knowledge and skills, they need appropriate training to obtain them. Training allows you to acquire this knowledge and improve your existing qualifications. The population that is able to work has the name of the labor force. For Russia, labor is men (18-60 years) and women (18-55 years).

Labor as a factor of production is very important and relevant, because it means the participation of a person in the production process, the use of his own energy and potential. The basic elements of labor include objects of labor, means and expedient human activities. The main results of labor: economic benefits, human development (physiological and mental), the conditions of human life, the accumulation of knowledge and experience.

Labor is not just an engine of progress, labor is the basis of human existence and activity, because under its influence the brain, speech develops, experience accumulates, skills are improved.

Labor as a factor of production has content and character. The content distinguishes low-skilled, medium-skill and highly skilled labor.

Labor has quantitative and qualitative characteristics. Qualitative characteristics - this is the level of qualification of employees, quantitative - it costs (the number of employees, the intensity of work, working hours). The more time it takes to train and train a specialist, the more qualified it is.

In order to determine the nature of labor, it is necessary to conduct a thorough analysis of the mix of labor and means of production, to clarify who and in what quantities appropriates the results of labor. With this in mind, three main social types of labor are distinguished : free, hired and forced. Forced labor is forced labor (slave labor). Currently, the first two types of work are encountered.

Free labor is voluntary. It is a work activity on oneself, when the owner and the employee act in one person. A typical example of such activities: entrepreneur, farmer, etc. If the labor activity is hired, then the employer and the employee are different people, their relations are formalized by the employment contract, sometimes by agreement or contract, and by the results of labor the employee receives a certain monetary reward.

For a long time, the question remained whether labor was a factor of production, or labor. The physical, mental and intellectual abilities of a person are labor. If the employer is interested in a person's ability to work, then the factor of production is the labor force. If the working time is important for him, then this factor is labor. To qualitatively work, a person must have certain health, abilities and skills, hence it follows that labor exists before the labor process begins.

Labor productivity is the ratio of the result of labor (the number of products produced) in a certain period of time. Labor productivity, in turn, depends on a number of factors that can affect it.