The Precariat as a New Social Class in the Context of Marxist Theory

Abstract

This article reviews the main approaches towards analyzing classes in theMarxist tradition. The conclusion is drawn that social structure is dynamic due to society’s complexity. New classes emerge, and sociology’s task is to revise classical theories and develop new principles of class formation. The article attempts to substantiate the principle of control over labor relations: when absent, it creates unstable labor relations and forms a new social class — the precariat. This principle is universal. It applies to the entire social structure and differs from exploitation and domination as classical indicators of classes. Based on the theory of E. Wright and the addition of the principle of control over labor relations, a new conceptual model of classes is constructed. The precariat as a new social class is assembled from the middle class that is losing stability, as well as from the ranks of the traditional proletariat, it being the core of the precariat.