Factors of Production: Labour – JSS1 Agricultural Science Lesson Note (Third Term)

Labour is all the productive human effort, mental and physical, put into the production of goods and services.

Behavioural objectives

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. define labour;
2. state the features of labour;
3. describe skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled labour;
4. name the forms of labour available to the farmer;
5. state the importance of labour in agricultural enterprise.

What are the factors of production?

Factors of production are the resources needed to produce goods and services.

• Land: all natural resources, such as soil, water, forests and minerals.
• Labour: the human effort used in production.
• Capital: money, tools, machines and buildings used to produce more goods.
• Management (entrepreneur): the person who organises the other factors and takes the risk.

What is labour?

Labour is the mental and physical effort of a person in the process of production.

• Mental (intellectual) effort: planning, record keeping and advising, as done by a farm manager.
• Physical (manual) effort: clearing, planting, weeding and harvesting.
• Condition: the effort must be directed towards producing goods and services.

What are the features of labour?

The features of labour are the qualities that make it different from the other factors of production.

1. Factor of production: labour is one of the four factors of production.
2. Two types of effort: human effort can be intellectual (mental) or manual (physical).
3. Mobile and has feelings: workers can move from job to job, so they cannot be used anyhow.
4. Three kinds: labour is skilled, semi-skilled or unskilled.
5. Unit of measurement: labour is measured in man-hours or man-days.
6. Reward: the reward for labour is wages and salaries.
7. Converts resources: it changes natural resources into usable products.
8. Variable asset: the amount used can change with the size of the farm and the season.
9. Affects output: the size and quality of labour influence production.
10. Can be improved: training raises the output of labour.

What are the kinds of labour?

There are three kinds of labour: skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled.

Skilled labour

• Meaning: highly educated and technical workers who provide the expertise for farm operations.
• Also called: white collar jobs.
• Examples: agricultural extension officer, veterinary doctor and farm manager.

Semi-skilled labour

• Meaning: averagely educated workers who perform simple farm operations.
• Examples: tractor driver, poultry attendant and farm clerk.

Unskilled labour

• Meaning: workers with little or no formal education.
• Also called: brown collar jobs.
• Examples: workers who weed, carry loads and harvest crops.

What forms of labour are available to the farmer?

There are four forms of labour available to the farmer: family, personal, communal and hired labour.

Family labour

• Meaning: labour provided by the farmer’s family, that is, the man, his wife and children.
• Manager: the head of the family is the operator or manager.
• Organisation: he organises the family labour himself and assigns a job to each member.
• Advantage: it is the major source of labour for the farmer and it is very cheap.
• Disadvantage: the number of family members is limited, and children may be at school.

Personal labour

• Meaning: labour provided by the owner of the farm.
• Use: the farmer works on the farm himself, as on a small farm.

Communal labour

• Meaning: labour provided by neighbours and the community.
• Use: neighbours help with heavy tasks such as clearing land or harvesting.
• Advantage: many hands finish the work quickly and it costs little.
• Disadvantage: it may not be available when the farmer needs it.

Hired or paid labour

• Meaning: labour that is paid either daily or by a salary at the end of the month.
• Use: it is common where a farmer has a large farm.
• Basis of hiring: workers are engaged on either a permanent or a time-rated basis.
• Cost: the farmer pays for each worker hired.
• Disadvantage: it is not readily available, so it is expensive.

What is the importance of labour in agricultural enterprise?

Labour is important because no farm can produce anything without human effort.

1. Uses other factors: it brings land and capital into use.
2. Raises production: intellectual labour ensures high agricultural production.
3. Provides expertise: skilled labour supplies the knowledge needed for major farm operations.
4. Ensures success: labour ensures the success of any agricultural enterprise.
5. Provides services: it supplies the services needed at each stage of agricultural production.

What affects the quality of farm labour?

The quality of labour depends on the health, training and motivation of the workers.

• Training: trained workers use tools and methods better.
• Health: healthy workers work longer and harder.
• Wages: fair pay encourages workers to give their best.
• Working conditions: safe tools and rest periods improve output.

Evaluation

1. What is labour?
2. State five features of labour.
3. What is skilled labour?
4. Name the four forms of labour available to the farmer.
5. Why is hired labour expensive?

Assignment

1. List the four forms of labour available to the farmer and state three importance of labour in agricultural enterprise.