Conflicts of interest and games of power concerning the standardization of the workforce

Abstract

The articulation of the concept of standardization investments with the theory of a dual labor market allows a new understanding of the labor market segmentation based on the standardization of the workforce. The more the workforce is standardized, the more the human resources allocation is driven by competitive forces because of lower transaction costs. Conversely, less standardization favors the administrative allocation of the internal labor market. Depending on the difference between the use value and the exchange value of workers, social actors use their power to favor or oppose workforce standardization and the consequent modification of the informational structure. The salary is not the result of an equilibrium due to the competitive forces that ensure a perfect informational structure on the labor market but the result of an equilibrium in the power relationships. The salary resulting from the social equilibrium might be distant from the one theoretically defined by the economic equilibrium.