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From Monopoly to Monopsony Capitalism

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  • Dev Nathan

    (Institute for Human Development
    GenDev Centre for Research and Innovation
    Centurion University of Technology and Management)

Abstract

This paper argues for the characterization of contemporary capitalism as monopsony capitalism and, specifically, as global monopsony capitalism. This means that the degrees of buyer power should be added to the usual demand–supply analysis of markets for labour power and other inputs. Monopsony is used to understand the nature of global value chains, within which the paper distinguishes high, medium and low levels of monopsony power and outlines the main features of labour conditions in these different levels of monopsony power. The paper also sees how the working of monopsony power is gendered. The concluding section points to the difficult task of forming countervailing power in the age of global monopsony capitalism.

Suggested Citation

  • Dev Nathan, 2021. "From Monopoly to Monopsony Capitalism," The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, Springer;The Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE), vol. 64(4), pages 843-866, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:ijlaec:v:64:y:2021:i:4:d:10.1007_s41027-021-00350-w
    DOI: 10.1007/s41027-021-00350-w
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    References listed on IDEAS

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