Imperialism in the Twenty-First Century

Bibliographic Data

ID9201719
AuthorsJohn Smith (0000-0002-0280-629X), John Masson Smith (0000-0002-7709-5509, corresponding author)
Year2015
Volume67
Issue3
Pages82
Publication date2015-07-06
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueMonthly Review (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0027-0520 • E-ISSN: 0027-0520
PublisherMonthly Review Foundation (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.14452/mr-067-03-2015-07_6
OpenAlexW2274662314
LanguageEN
Citations received41

The globalization of production and its shift to low-wage countries is the most significant and dynamic transformation of the neoliberal era. Its fundamental driving force is what some economists call "global labor arbitrage": the efforts by firms in Europe, North America, and Japan to cut costs and boost profits by replacing higher-waged domestic labor with cheaper foreign labor, achieved either through emigration of production ("outsourcing," as used here) or through immigration of workers. Reduction in tariffs and removal of barriers to capital flows have spurred the migration of production to low-wage countries, but militarization of borders and rising xenophobia have had the opposite effect on the migration of workers from these countries—not stopping it altogether, but inhibiting its flow and reinforcing migrants' vulnerable, second-class status. Click here to purchase a PDF version of this article at the Monthly Review website

Arbitrage · Capital (architecture) · Economics · Economy · Geography · Globalization · Immigration · Labour economics · Market economy · Militarization · Outsourcing · Political science · Politics · Production (economics) · Wage · Employment and Welfare Studies · Migration and Labor Dynamics · Regional resilience and development