Théorie de l'État et monnaie moderne

Histoire des Faits Économiques - Licence Eco-gestion - 1ère année

• Séance 3 - 30/09/2024: Focus on work, coercion, and compensation (slavery, serfdom, wage labor)
• Résumé de la séance précédente (L'essor des États, la naissance des monnaies):
  • States emerged independently, resolving coordination issues due to population growth.
  • Authority and legitimacy are key principles, often intertwined with religious power.
  • Monetary systems developed independently of states (Mesopotamia, 3rd millennium BCE), evolving due to innovations (e.g., coinage in Lydia, paper money in China).
• Questions sur la séance précédente :
  • Instruments of coordination (particularly language and institutions—political and economic—like states and money) are essential for effective human collaboration.
  • State and currency functions were discussed, with a focus on the secularization movement impacting state legitimacy.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : esclavage, servage, salariat:
  • The modern money system evolved primarily in Asia.
  • Early state development occurred in Asia and Egypt.
  • Early states developed technical, organizational, and intellectual capacities (writing, accounting) around 2000 BCE.
  • This led to the development of specialized administrative bodies.
  • State control over currency is a common thread.
  • Currency is essential for many types of coercion, exchange, and social structure.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : esclavage, servage, salariat (continued):
  • States, particularly in Asia, rapidly controlled and regulated currency.
  • States employed monetary measures to control and influence their populations. 
  • States used measures to suppress opposing groups and maintain power through coercion.
  • Parallel development of state and monetary systems is evident.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : esclavage, servage, salariat (continued):
  • Different forms of work (slavery, serfdom, and wage labor) are interlinked with political and economic power structures.
  • The division of labor (DT) has had a significant impact, particularly since the Neolithic Revolution.
  • The DT's evolution is evident in the organization of states and in the relationships between individuals and groups (by age or gender).
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : esclavage, servage, salariat (continued):
  • States have played, and continue to play, a key role in shaping work structures.
  • Development of social roles and differentiation are tied to state development and the division of labor.
  • The division of labor was intertwined with societal structures, including hierarchies and specialization of roles (i.e., orators, soldiers, workers).
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : esclavage, servage, salariat (continued):
  • Forms of work throughout history, such as slavery, serfdom, and wage labor.
  • Subordination and payment in relation to the three forms of work are important to note here.
  • The key to understanding is the interrelation of work, power, and payment within societal structure.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : esclavage, servage, salariat (continued):
  • The concept of work has been subject to economic, social, and cultural influences since the Neolithic era.
  • Work is often tied to economic choices, particularly as the division of labor increases.
  • There is a conflict between the increasing value of work and the dehumanization of workers.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : esclavage, servage, salariat (continued):
  • In areas where division of labor is smaller, the quantity of work is prioritized over its quality.
  • Factors such as the lack of developed division of labor (DT), the youth of the populations, and the inherent economics of slavery and servitude are relevant here.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : esclavage, servage, salariat (continued):
  • The state's role in work organization remains relevant in societies with limited division of labor.
  • Patterns regarding the organization of work are intertwined with geographic location.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : esclavage, servage, salariat (continued):
  • States and the division of labor (DT) create pressures against the use of coercion and forced work schemes.
  • States create their own forms of coercive labor control.
  • The division of labor is a driving factor in escaping forms of forced labor, albeit indirectly.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : esclavage, servage, salariat (continued):
  • The fall of the Roman Empire caused a significant shift in the labor market.
  • Urban decline and the increase in agricultural labor suggest a reversion to a less developed labor market.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : esclavage, servage, salariat (continued):
  • The rise and fall of slavery, serfdom, and wage labor demonstrates the complexities of work during times of economic expansion and contraction.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : esclavage, servage, salariat (continued):
  • The evolution of work is heavily influenced by the relationship between the employer and the worker (subordination).
  • The balance between workers' rights (and freedoms) and employer power is crucial to labor.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : esclavage, servage, salariat (continued):
  • The development of a wage-labor system is characterized by increasing importance of contract, particularly after the period of slavery and servitude.
  • The contract between employer and employee is crucial for the evolution of wage labor.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : conditions de naissance du salariat:
  • Four key factors enabled the emergence of wage labor:
    • increased division of labor, rise of urban centers, artisanate, and specialist labor tasks.
    • Increase in the relative value of labor compared to capital.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : conditions de naissance du salariat:
  • Increased labor value relative to capital is a driver of wage-labor systems.
    • In certain periods, labor's value is not enough to surpass the value of capital.
  • Increased ability to exchange labor for a form of payment, such as currency, was crucial to the development of wage labor.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : conditions de naissance du salariat:
  • Many social and political factors contributed to the development of wage labor and the rise of a wage-labor-based economic organization in Europe.
  • Development of political systems to manage the division of labor and to regulate employment.
• HFE – 3 – Travail, coercition et rémunération : conditions de naissance du salariat:
  • The development of wage labor was a multifaceted process.
  • Evolution of legal structures for employment regulation.
  • The impact of population growth and economic expansion is evident in the transition towards the wage-labor system, leading away from the coercive systems of slavery or serfdom.