Technological Change and Manpower: an Historical Perspective

Abstract

In this article, I wish to make some general historical observations on the effects of technological change upon manpower; not only the immediate labour‐saving effects, but also the longer‐term consequences on the demand for labour and the structure of employment. And I shall illustrate these points with some particular, though brief, references to the engineering and printing industries, in which I have had research interests. In general I am inclined to take a more optimistic view than that presented by many socio‐economic historians, who, from Marx and Engels onwards, have tended to associate industrial mechanisation with capitalist exploitation and human degradation.

Citation

Musson, A.E. (1980), "Technological Change and Manpower: an Historical Perspective", International Journal of Manpower, Vol. 1 No. 3, pp. 2-5. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb044825