Labour and Value: Addressing 21st-Century Existential Challenges

By Ivan A Salazar

Fifth book in the Historical Materialism series

In Labour and Value, social theorist Ivan A. Salazar delivers a groundbreaking synthesis of historical materialism, ecological economics, feminist political economy, and democratic planning. This fifth volume in Salazar's transformative series redefines the meaning of labour and value for the 21st century, offering a bold vision for a just, sustainable, and democratic future.

Spanning topics from unpaid care work and Indigenous economies to Lean Manufacturing and post-capitalist futures, Salazar critiques the limitations of GDP, neoclassical economics, and financialization, while proposing new metrics of value-such as Doughnut Economics, Gross National Happiness, and Job Quality Indices. He explores how automation, AI, and globalization can either deepen inequality or empower communities, depending on how they are governed.

Drawing on global case studies-from Argentina's recovered factories to Bhutan's happiness index, from Kenya's sacred forests to Finland's educational reforms-Labour and Value is both analytical and visionary. It is a call to reclaim value from the grip of capital and root it in care, creativity, ecological stewardship, and democratic agency.

Whether you're a scholar, policymaker, activist, or curious reader, this book offers a compelling framework for reimagining the economy-not as a machine for profit, but as a system for human and planetary flourishing.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0FNWGJZH5
• ISBN13: 9798262364046
• Release Date: August 2025
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 318 Pages
• Weight: 0.94 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.0"