Labour Value
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Labour Value
Labour Value refers to the intrinsic value of labor time expended in the creation of goods and services. If it takes one hour to bake a loaf of bread, then the Labour Value of that bread is one hour of productive human time. This concept lies at the heart of classical political economy and is foundational to critiques of capitalist accumulation, where workers receive less than the full value of their labor.[1]
<glossary>Labour Value refers to the amount of human labor time embodied in a good or service, serving as a foundational measure of economic worth in classical and Marxian political economy.</glossary>
Concept Map
Key Terms
- Accumulating Class
- Creation Template
- Labour Value
- Slave Class
- Surplus Value
- Unfettered Accumulation
- World System
Related LP Terms
Non-LP Related Terms
Why This Matters
The concept of Labour Value is essential to understanding economic exploitation under capitalist regimes. In capitalist systems, the Accumulating Class captures surplus value—i.e., the difference between the labour performed and the wage paid—thus creating systemic inequality. Recognizing Labour Value as the basis for exchange illuminates how wealth is extracted and accumulated at scale, often invisibly.
See Also
Notes
- The video Money Moksha offers a grounded explanation of Labour Value and how its appropriation underpins capitalist accumulation.
- The term originates in classical economics but is central to Marxian critique.
- See also: Surplus Value, Wage Labour, Mode of Accumulation.
Quotes
"Money contains the value of a certain quantity of labour which we exchange for what is supposed at the time to contain the value of an equal quantity..." — Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations
"The value of any commodity... is equal to the quantity of labor which it enables him to purchase or command. Labor, therefore, is the real measure of the exchangeable value of all commodities." — Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations
"Labor alone, therefore, never varying in its own value, is alone the ultimate and real standard by which the value of all commodities can at all times and places be estimated and compared." — Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations
"All wealth is the product of labor." — John Locke
Citation and Legal
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Footnotes
- ↑ Money Moksha. Canada: LP Studios, 2017. https://youtu.be/Ir0R7yAFiO8