Rioux, S., LeBaron, G. orcid.org/0000-0003-0083-6126 and Verovsek, P.J. (2019) Capitalism and unfree labour : a review of Marxist perspectives on modern slavery. Review of International Political Economy, 27 (3). pp. 709-731. ISSN 0969-2290
Abstract
Contrary to the expectations of liberal and neoclassical economists, as well as many Marxists, the deepening and extension of capitalism appear to be heightening the prevalence of unfree labor. By most accounts, the forms of exploitation encapsulated within unfree labor – including those typically referred to as forced labor, human trafficking and modern slavery – are proliferating in the global economy, including in advanced capitalist societies. We evaluate these developments in light of the relationship between capitalism and unfree labor through the prism of Marxism, revealing a deep-seated divide between a neo-Smithian reading, according to which capitalism and unfree labor are incompatible, and a more faithful Marxist tradition that views forced labor as one possible form of labor control and exploitation under capitalism. Building on this second tradition, we argue that international political economy scholars who seek to shed light into the contemporary and historic dynamics of unfree labor must transcend the rigid theoretical binaries that have long characterized Marxist debates on capitalism and unfree labor.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2019 Taylor & Francis. This is an author-produced version of a paper subsequently published in Review of International Political Economy. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | Unfree labor; capitalism; Marxism; modern slavery; economic development; global governance |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Department of Politics and International Relations (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 07 Aug 2019 14:25 |
Last Modified: | 09 Dec 2021 14:27 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Taylor & Francis |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1080/09692290.2019.1650094 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:149433 |