Labor and Monopoly Capital: The Degradation of Work in the Twentieth Century

Preface by Paul Sweezy

Foreword by John Bellamy Foster

This widely acclaimed work, first published in 1974, overturned the reigning ideologies of academic sociology and became the standard text for many basic areas of sociological inquiry, including the science of managerial control, the relationship of technological innovation to social class, and the eradication of skill from work under capitalism.

A new foreword by John Bellamy Foster sets the work in historical and theoretical context. Also included are two rare articles by Braverman that add much to our understanding of the book: “The Degradation of Work in the Twentieth Century” (1975) and “Two Comments” (1976).

Harry Braverman (1920-1976) drew on his rich experience as pipefitter, sheetmetal worker, freightcar repairman, structural steel fitter, and later as journalist, editor, and publisher to produce a work of enormous power and lasting relevance. He was Director of Monthly Review Press from 1967 until the time of his death in 1976.