Value beyond labor time: Production and participation in contemporary political economy

This paper challenges the contemporary relevance of the Labor Theory of Value (LTV), arguing that labor time no longer provides an adequate metric for value creation in economies structured by automation and digital platforms. As economic activity becomes increasingly mediated by data-driven systems, value depends less on direct labor input and more on the conditions that enable participation in production. To account for this shift, the paper develops a structural framework in which value is modeled as a function of the means of production (Mₚ) and the means of participation (Mπ). While Mₚ captures technological capacity, infrastructure, and data systems, Mπ refers to the institutional, digital, and organizational conditions required to access and engage with these systems, including credentials, connectivity, network position, and algorithmic visibility. Participation in this framework is defined not as activity in general, but as rule-bound engagement within specific systems that structure access to production. By formalizing value as V = f(Mₚ, Mπ), the framework highlights the complementarity between production capacity and participation access. Constraints on participation limit value realization even in the presence of advanced technological systems. Where the Labor Theory of Value relies on socially necessary labor time (SNLT) to measure the quantity of labor required for production, the present framework emphasizes socially necessary participation (SNP) as the condition under which labor becomes economically effective. Within this structure, labor is reinterpreted as a cost-bearing participant that invests in its own participation capacity, thereby blurring the conventional distinction between labor and capital. The analysis extends to surplus allocation through a co-investment framework, in which multiple forms of capital, including human, financial, and technological, generate claims on output. The framework further identifies participation conditions as a site of economic power and potential commodification, as access to production is governed by institutional and algorithmic systems that regulate inclusion, visibility, and opportunity. This perspective supports a shift in the analysis of economic justice from post-production redistribution toward pre-distribution, emphasizing the role of participation conditions in shaping economic outcomes.