Labour supply and labour efficiency
Yvonne Harvey, Contributor

In last week's lesson, labour, as a factor of production, was defined. You may remember that it was defined as man's physical and mental contribution to the creation of goods and services. The reward for the use of labour in production is either a wage or salary.

Labour can be classified (grouped) in different ways and under different headings. I will now classify labour under three main headings: skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled.

SKILLED LABOUR

Labour which requires lengthy education and or training, for example engineers, mechanics, electricians, teachers, doctors, nurses, pharmacists and so on.

SEMI-SKILLED LABOUR

Labour which requires some amount of education and training, the period for which is usually short and less intensive than that of skilled labour.

UNSKILLED LABOUR

Labour which involves little or no special education and training and usually involves working with the hands, for example cleaners, street sellers, watchmen, drivers and so on.

Labour is important to all forms of production, even the automated form of production where labour is required to operate machinery and supervise automated processes. Without labour, it would be impossible to convert resources into goods and services that people want. Therefore, production could not take place.

Since labour is so important, its supply needs to be adequate. Labour supply refers to the amount of labour service available. There are many factors which influence the supply of labour. I will now proceed to discuss some of these.

(1) The size of the population of the country - generally speaking, a country with a large population will have a large labour supply.

(2) The structure of the population of the country - a large population alone cannot guarantee a large labour supply if the population is made up of a high proportion of very young and or very old people who are not available for work.

(3) School-leaving and retirement ages - policies of government may either increase or decrease these ages. An increase in the school-leaving age will reduce the labour supply, while an increase in the age of retirement will increase the labour supply.

(4) The extent to which women go out to work - this is dependent on factors such as economic conditions, traditions and attitudes towards working mothers. The greater the extent to which women work, the greater will be the labour supply.

(5) The birth rate of the country - If the birth rate of a country slows down, this will affect the future supply of labour.

(6) The number of hours worked - the greater the number of hours worked, the greater will be the labour supply. In developed countries, there is a trend towards a shorter working week; this has the effect of reducing the supply of labour.

(7) The death rate of the country - if inadequate and inappropriate health services cause an increase in the death rate, this will ultimately reduce the future labour supply.

(8) The effects of migration of people to foreign countries - as migration increases, the labour supply of the home country falls. This was the case in the Caribbean in the mid 1950s to 1970s. Now see if you can do some research and add to the list of factors, which influence the labour supply of a country.

Labour efficiency

We will now move on to labour efficiency. Labour efficiency has to do with the quality of labour and its ability to work at its best. As with the supply of labour, the efficiency is affected by a number of factors. Some of these factors are noted below:

(i) the amount and quality of education and training of the labour

(ii) the efficiency of factors of production and technology used by the labour

(iii) health and well-being of the labour force

(iv) the extent to which job security and upward mobility can be assured

(v) working conditions under which labour exists

(vi) monetary and other benefits given to labour

(vii) attitude of workers towards work

Again, your research will reveal factors that have not been listed above. You can add these to the list.

It will be useful for you to examine types of labour that exist in your own community, giving examples of each. Consider the main factors affecting the supply and efficiency of the labour in your community.

In preparation for next week's lesson, you may wish to do some reading on human resource development and mobility of labour. Bye for now.

The Small Business Association of Jamaica (SBAJ) marked its 34th year with a series of celebrations that began with a church service. Here, Reverend Major Sirrano Kitson greets SBAJ President Edward Chin-Mook and his wife, Erica, at the end of the service held at the St Andrew Parish Church on October 12, 2008. - File

Yvonne Harvey teaches at Glenmuir High School.