Division of labour: Encyclopedia II - Division of labour - Modern debates

Division of labour - Modern debates

In the modern world, those specialists most preoccupied in their work with theorising about the division of labour are those involved in management and organisation. In view of the global extremities of the division of labour, the question is often raised about what division of labour would be most ideal, beautiful, efficient and just.

Labour hierarchy is to a great extent inevitable, simply because no one can do all tasks at once; but of course the way these hierarchies are structured can be influenced by a variety of different factors. The question to ask is what the hierarchy is a hierarchy of.

An important Western concept in this regard is the concept of meritocracy, which could alternately be read as an explanation or as a justification of why a division of labour is the way it is. But it is often agreed that the most equitable principle in allocating people within hierarchies is that of true (or proven) competency or ability.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Modern debates", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki