An agro-industrial processing firm in West Africa assigns workers exclusively to narrow, repetitive tasks: one crew sorts raw cocoa beans, another manages roasting, and a third operates the extraction press. Following an upgrade to fully automated bean-sorting technology, the manual sorting staff face severe unemployment because their highly specialized skills cannot easily be transferred to other technical roles within the enterprise. Which major drawback of division of labor is directly demonstrated by this situation?
- Occupational immobility of labor due to extreme skill narrownessAnswer
- BDiminishing marginal returns resulting from over-utilization of fixed capital inputs
- CInefficiencies arising from the geographical localization of manufacturing industries
- DLoss of absolute cost advantage in foreign export markets
Answer
Occupational immobility of labor due to extreme skill narrowness
Extreme division of labor forces workers to perform single repetitive tasks, leading to loss of overall craftsmanship and versatility. When technology renders a specific task redundant, these workers suffer from occupational immobility because their skills are too specialized to be easily repurposed elsewhere in the economy or firm.
Step-by-Step Solution
Key Concept
Disadvantages of Division of Labor: Occupational Immobility of Labor