# Profit Requires Exploitation By:: [[Ross Jackson]] 2025-01-30 There are two sides to the profit equation: revenue and cost. Revenue is generated at the point of purchase. Most firms attempt to maximize the price of their product. However, most products are nonessential. These items face a downward consumer demand. The higher the price, the fewer items one can sell (ceteris paribus). Market dynamics influence pricing decisions. The other side of the equation is cost, which includes capital investments and labor costs. Often, there is a mix of the two. As labor costs increase, capital investments (i.e., automation) become relatively less expensive. When capital investments occur, less labor is needed, increasing unemployment and a willingness on the part of the unemployed and the fearful to work for less. Desperate people are typically willing to work for less. As they do, the cost of operations decreases, and the organization experiences an increase in profits. Exploitation occurs when the pay for work is less than the value of the work performed. Organizations exist to make a profit. If an organization attempts to make a profit by maximizing the selling price of the product, consumers, with other options available, will simply not buy the product. There is roughly a “market price” for one’s product. It is difficult to sell a product above that level. If an organization attempts to make a profit by minimizing the wages of the workforce, often people will work for less. This is especially the case when: a) there is a significant degree of unemployment, b) there is little in the way of government protections or welfare, and c) healthcare is provided through employment. Within the United States, there is a push for a return to the office. The flimsy justification for this is that it increases collaboration and productivity. The data do not support this justification. The real reason is the hope that disgruntled people forced to return to the office will quit. This will increase unemployment, creating a situation where people are willing to work for less. And thus, the capitalist class will increase its exploitation and profits by forcing a return to the office. Less than 5% of the United States can be considered part of the capitalist class because most of their income is derived from capital investments. Most of us work for a living. This means that most of us are being exploited. Oddly, few have a problem with this. The fact that so few have a problem with this situation reflects the degree to which the capitalist ideology is broadly accepted within our society. Marx and Engels said something to the effect that the ruling class's ideology is the dominant ideology. This ideology is accepted by the masses, not because it is correct but because it is the most readily available (i.e., it is propagated through politics, media, and entertainment). This ideology constrains the majority. It keeps the majority of those in the working class in deprivation while those in the capitalist class enjoy unimaginable wealth. The “success” of the capitalist class is presented as the product of their insight and industry. By and large, it isn’t. The success of those in the capitalist class is commonly the result of exploitation, which is theft. This will continue until the working class demands what is rightfully theirs. The power of the working class lies in its unity, standing together in solidarity to challenge the status quo and demand dignity, respect, and just compensation for all workers. #### Related Items [[Work]] [[Capitalism]] [[Class]] [[Status Quo]] [[Ideology]] [[Power]] [[Economics]]