Role of Division of Labor in Industry

Introduction It is the social structural foundation of the specialized commodity production divided between industries, firms, and occupations of workers, or the technical division of tasks.

Definition

Division of labor is a kind of Specialization. It is to satisfy the largest possible number of wants, we have to organize them by division of labor a way that yields the greatest volume of output.

Types of division of labor There are three types of division of labor

• Simple division of labor• Complex division of labor• Regional and international division of labor

Simple division of labor•A person specializes in producing a particular product or service.•It is more common in a primitive society.For example:Farming

Complex division of labor

•A person specializes in a sub-process of the production of a good or service.•It is more common in modern society.

Regional and international division of labor•Different countries specialize in certain types of products. For examples:•Production of Cars in Japan•Production of electronic goods in china•Production of fruits in Pakistan

Merits of Division of Labor•Higher Productivity•Lower Costs•Simplified Training•Inventions•Greater cooperation• Better goodwill

•Practice makes perfect

•choosing the best person to do a job

•Economy of time

•Economy of capital goods

•Possibility of mechanization

Contd.

•Practice makes a man perfect. •By concentrating on the repeating the same task again and again, a worker acquires dexterity, skill and speed, and more over, division of labor avoids waste of time and effort caused by changes from one task to another. •Specialization requires simplification of tasks and facilitates use of labor saving devices. Due to all these the quantity and quality of work increase tremendously.

Higher Productivity

Lower costs Division of labor increases the efficiency of workers. Wasteful duplica tion of process and tools is avoided. Large scale production offers several economies in the use of materials, machinery and skills. Therefore, costs of operations are reduced.

Simplified training

Specialization implies that the worker need not learn the entire job. He needs to learn only a part of the whole task. Much time and effort is saved in the training of workers. Physical toil is also reduced.

Inventions•When a worker performs the same job again and again he tries to discover new and better methods of doing the work.•This increases the possibilities of inven tions and innovations. Division of labor thereby facilitates mechanization and auto mation of jobs. Use of machinery reduces stress and strain on workers.

Greater cooperation Under division of labor the whole job cannot be completed unless workers performing different parts of the job cooperate with each other there fore, division of work results in greater cooperation and discipline amongst workers. Besides, each worker is assigned the task best suited to him.

Better goodwill Higher efficiency and better quality of work help to satisfy customers and to earn higher profits. Simplification, standardization and automation of work also add to the firm's goodwill. As the supply of a variety of goods in the society increases, people can enjoy a higher standard of living than before.

Economy of Time •Save time in training of workers•Increase duplication of tool and equipment•Increase capital goods needed•Decrease average cost of production

Possibility of Mechanization•Mass production means possible to employ machines to replace the workers

•increase labor productivity

•increase total output

Demerits•Monotony•Lack of responsibility•Loss of joy/personality associated with the production of a whole product•Unemployment on account of large scale production•Dependence•Class conflict between employers and employees•Greater risk of unemployment

Monotony As a worker has to do the same work again and again he starts losing interest and pleasure in the work. The work becomes monotonous in nature and bore dom arises.

Lack of responsibility Under division of labor, the final product is not the output of a single person but the creation of several workers. Therefore, no individual can be held responsible if anything goes wrong. Involvement of workers in their work is re duced.

Lack of job pride As a worker performs only a part of the job, he cannot take pride in the final output. There is little pleasure of creating something. Specialized workers may lose jobs due to changes in the process of work.

Interdependence•Division of labor leads to interdependence between indi viduals, firms, industries and countries. Failure of any one link due to strike, war, breakdown in transport and communication, depression, etc. may cause great harm.•Inferior output by one worker may spoil the quality of the entire product. Specialists know only a single process of production. In case of unemployment, they find is difficult to get jobs.

Limited market•The extent of division of labor is limited by size of the market demand. Division of labor is possible only when the scale of production is large. Large scale production is not always possible and it suffers from the evils of factory system.•Greater risk of unemployment•It is often difficult for a worker trained for a particular task or profession to change over to another job