The most significant feature of contemporary capitalism in relation to the world of work is its inability to provide work to a substantial proportion of persons looking for it. This has diverse implications, ranging from hunger and crime to socio-psychological distress and to the boost it provides to the upsurge of fascism. This lecture discusses the structural dynamics in capitalism that produces unemployment and the expansion of the ranks of the reserve army of labor. Moreover, it argues that a theory of imperialism is essential to explaining the perpetuation of the reserve army of labor and the reproduction of contemporary capitalism itself.
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