DIVISION OF LABOR: HOW IT ARISES, ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES - JOB - 2024

The division of labor is an economic concept that establishes that dividing the production process into different stages allows workers to specialize in specific tasks, each task being performed by a person or group of people separately.

If workers can focus on a small aspect of production, this increases overall efficiency, as long as enough has been produced. It is most often applied to mass production systems and is one of the basic organizing principles of an assembly line.

Breaking down work into simple repetitive tasks eliminates unnecessary movement and limits the handling of different tools and parts. Reduced production time and the ability to replace artisans with lower paid unskilled workers results in lower production costs and a less expensive end product.

Daily production has become so technical and complex that different workers are assigned to different tasks according to their ability and skill. Different workers do different parts of the production depending on their specialization.

The result is that the products reach their final form with the cooperation of many workers. For example, in a large-scale garment factory, one person cuts the fabric, the second person sews the clothes by machine, the third places the buttons, the fourth folds and packs, and so on.

This way of doing work is called division of labor, because different workers are engaged in different parts of production.

How does it arise?

The concept of the division of labor was popularized in 1776 by the Scottish economist Adam Smith in his book The Wealth of Nations.

For this he used the famous example of a pin factory. Adam Smith observed how production efficiency was greatly increased as workers were divided and assigned different roles.

He saw this division of tasks as key to economic growth, by providing a cheaper and more efficient means of producing goods.

According to Smith, economic growth is rooted in the division of labor. This idea is primarily related to the specialization of the workforce, essentially the disintegration of large jobs into many small components.

The fact that workers do not have to change tasks during the day saves time and money. This is exactly what allowed factories to grow throughout the 19th century.

Division of Labor Problems

Surprisingly, Smith recognized the potential problems with this development. He noted that forcing people to perform simple and repetitive tasks led to an ignorant and unsatisfied workforce.

For this reason, he formulated the revolutionary belief that governments had an obligation to provide education to workers.

Sociological sense

The French scholar Émile Durkheim first used the phrase division of labor in a sociological sense in his discussion of social evolution.

Rather than seeing the division of labor as a result of the desire for material abundance, Durkheim asserted that specialization arose from changes in social structure, caused by a supposed natural increase in population size and density and an increase in competition. for survival.

What does it consist of?

A very basic example of the division of labor could be seen in the gathering of food. In early societies, men were the hunters and women and children prepared the food and gathered the berries.

It was a very simple division of labor to allow the best use of the different skill sets.

Today there is an even greater division of labor in food production. Farmers buy the seeds, fertilizers and tractors from different companies. They only focus on one aspect of food production.

Forms of division of labor

Occupational or simple

It is the division of people in society according to their occupations. Each individual takes a particular type of occupation for which he is best suited. Thus, in a community some are teachers, others are doctors and others are merchants or agents.

When all the work in a particular production is done by the same worker, it is called a simple division of labor.

In processes or complex division of labor

When all the work in production is divided into different processes and each process is assigned to different people, it is called process specialization.

There are divisions there and each division is done by one person. This implicit division of labor is called the complex division of labor. Modern mass production builds on this.

For example, shoemaking in a modern factory involves a complex division of labor. The upper part of the shoe is prepared by one group of workers, the bottom is prepared by another group, the sewing work by a third group, and polishing or finishing by a fourth group of workers.

Success factors of the division of labor

Wide market and large-scale production

A large market requires large-scale production; hence, a greater possibility of a division of labor.

A complex division of labor and a large scale of production are only possible when there is a market large enough to absorb the entire supply of goods produced.

The division of labor is found mainly in large factories, where basic products are produced on a large scale; Only then will it be possible to divide the work into different processes and assign the procedure to a different set of workers.

Nature of industry and product

Some industries are of such a nature that it is not possible to divide work into distinct and separate processes. The scope of the division of labor is limited.

The nature of the product imposes another limitation: if the product is such that its manufacture cannot be divided into different processes, a division of labor will not be possible.

Organizational capacity

The division of labor involves the employment of a large number of workers in a factory. Handling them properly and assigning each worker a suitable job requires high-level judgment of human nature.

Cooperation spirit

The division of labor is successful when there is perfect coordination between the different processes and full cooperation between workers. Without the spirit of cooperation and compromise, the division of labor cannot be effective.

Advantage

Reduction in production cost

The division of labor increases production, which reduces the average cost of production. Saving tools, machinery, etc., also helps reduce production cost.

Maximum utilization of machinery

The division of labor is the result of large-scale production that involves greater use of machines. On the other hand, the division of labor also increases the possibility of using machines in small-scale productions.

Large-scale production

Due to the use of plant and machinery under the division of labor, production begins to increase on a large scale, resulting in a lower cost of production, increasing profits for the producer.

Time saving

It is not necessary for the worker to change from one procedure to another. It is used in a defined process with certain tools; therefore, you keep working without wasting time, sitting in one place.

Continuity in work saves time and helps increase production at lower cost.

Production of superior quality goods

When a worker is entrusted with the job for which he is best suited, he is sure to produce superior quality products.

Better selection of workers

The division of labor helps to better select workers. As the work is divided into different parts and each part is occupied by the worker who is the most suitable for it, the most suitable personnel for the work can be selected very easily.

Workers need less training as they only have to master a small number of tasks.

Disadvantages

Loss of responsibility

Many workers come together to produce a product. If the production is not good and adequate, no one can be held responsible for it.

In general, it is said that "the responsibility of each man is not the responsibility of man." Therefore, the division of labor has the disadvantage of loss of responsibility.

Increased dependency

When production is divided into several processes and each part is performed by different workers, it can lead to over-dependency.

For example, in the case of a garment factory, if the man who cuts the fabric is lazy, he will suffer from the work of sewing, buttoning, etc. Therefore, greater dependency is the result of the division of labor.

Monotony of work

In the division of labor, a worker has to do the same job over and over again for years. Therefore, after some time the worker feels bored or the work becomes tedious and monotonous.

There is no creative pleasure

The division of labor kills the creative pleasure of producing an article, because so many people contribute in the making of it, no one can claim credit for having done it.

References

1. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (2018). Division of labor. Taken from: en.wikipedia.org.
2. Tejvan Pettinger (2017). Division of Labor. Economics Help. Taken from: economicshelp.org.
3. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica (2018). Division of labor. Taken from: britannica.com.
4. Saqib Shaikh (2018). Division of Labor: Meaning, Forms and Advantages. Economics Discussion. Taken from: economicsdiscussion.net.
5. Nikhila (2018). Division of Labor: Meaning, Advantages and Disadvantages. Business Management Ideas. Taken from: businessmanagementideas.com.