Persistent Inequalities

Botwinick provocatively shows that competition and technical change often militate against wage equalization, and calls for militant union organization that can once again take wages and working conditions out of capitalist competition. Economists generally assume that wage differentials among similar workers will only endure when competition in the capital and/or labour market is restricted. However, using a classical Marxist analysis of real capitalist competition, Botwinick shows that substantial patterns of wage disparity can persist despite high levels of competition. Going against mainstream proponents of labour-management cooperation, the author calls for militant union organization that can once again take wages and working conditions out of capitalist competition.