the specialisation and division of labour Flashcards
what is the division of labour
a process whereby the production procedure is broken down into a sequence of stages, and workers are assigned to a particular stage
what are 3 reasons that the division of labour are effective
- individual workers become skilled and specialised at tasks by focusing on a stage so become more efficient
- more effective as workers don’t spend time moving from one activity to another
- specialisation also enables firms to operate on a larger scale.
what are the advantages of division of labour
- working in a team allows more overall output to be produced
-training can be provided more cost-effectively as it can be focused on specific tasks the workers need to perform - specialisation means workers can focus on the tasks they perform and become more productive - firms decreased cost of production
what are the disadvantages of division of labour
- a worker always doing repetitive tasks may become bored and careless
- firms may have problems with staff turnover
- workers become inflexible : if someone is sick it is hard to find a cover
what is specialisation between firms
where you might have a firm to produce tires, and another for windows and another for assembly
what is bad about specialisation between firms
they may be vulnerable in times of recession, or if it supplies another firm with trading difficulties and if demand falls they may have to close down - provides incentive to diversify
what is specialisation between nations
when specific nations specialise - some countries have different temperatures so can grow foods other countries cannot
what is bad about specialisation between nations
if the price of the product falls relative to other prices, the country is highly dependant on exports or imports it can cause global disruption of trade and create problems
What is specialisation
the concentration of production on a narrow range of goods or services
What are the 5 advantages of specialisation
- Higher output
- Wider range of goods - within area
- Greater allocative efficiency - of resources
- Higher productivity
- Quality improvements
What are the 4 disadvantages of specialisation
- finite resources
- Changes in fashion/tastes
- De industrialisation - other country overtakes
- National interdependence
what is division of labour
breaking down the production process into separate tasks upon specialisation
What are the 3 advantages of division of labour
- workers are highly productive
- Specialist capital for workers
- Lower prices, higher quality/choice, higher quality for consumers
What are the 4 disadvantages of division of labour
- Demotivation of workers
- High worker turnover
- Risk of long term unemployment
4.highly standardised goods and services
What is division of labour
when a job is broken down into many smaller tasks
