Energy Rents and Income Distribution: Are Wages and Profits Legitimate?

By Bernard C. Beaudreau

This book explores into the dynamics of income distribution, challenging the established approaches of 19th-century political economist Karl Marx and 21st-century economist Thomas Piketty. Re-examinining the foundational principles of wealth creation through the lens of physical sciences, particularly mechanics, thermodynamics, and kinetics, Bernard C. Beaudreau argues that energy, rather than labor or capital, drives material processes and the accumulation of wealth.

In the book, Beaudreau critiques current distribution theories, highlighting their connections to the basic laws of physics. He introduces the energy-organization approach, positing that labor and capital are organizationally productive rather than physically productive. This perspective can be used to observe income distribution as they connect to energy rents, which are the returns to energy after accounting for its costs. The book touches on globalization, presenting this approach as a form of energy rent seeking rather than a result of comparative advantage. Beaudreau proposes alternative systems for distributing energy rents and examines their implications for the legitimacy of wages and profits.

Integrating scientific principles with economic theory, this book offers a unique approach to conversations surrounding income inequality.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 3032058619
• ISBN13: 9783032058614
• Release Date: December 2025
• Publisher: Palgrave MacMillan
• Length: 168 Pages