Transformation of the system of labor values in the emerging labor paradigm

Modern society now faces the necessity to transform the system of labor values in the emerging paradigm of labor. The structure of the work force is changing; there is a decrease in physical labor and an increase in intellectual, highly qualified and creative labor, otherwise known as ‘knowledge workers’. The basic ‘means of production’ are the qualification of employees. The contemporary stage of societal development is characterized by the fact that the building of material wealth has ceased to be people’s main goal. Nonmaterial values and interests are providing progress in society. Due to this, a new problem of material and social inequality has appeared in developed economies. The remaining 78-79% of the population still strives for new material wealth, which serves as a basis for a new class conflict. In the process of analyzing the transformation of labor values, it is important to determine the conditions and prerequisites for the appearance of new values. A retrospective analysis of the transformation of labor has revealed that values differ depending on the historic period, culture and nationality (protestant and orthodox ethics; preindustrial, industrial and post-industrial societies). The factors influencing the transformation of labor values can be divided into two groups: internal (individual, socio-demographic, socio-territorial factors), and external (institutional, organizational, socio-cultural). This involves organizational (a new paradigm of labor: the changing work environment, what the work entails, cause of motivation), socio-territorial (changes in population, migration from rural to urban areas), socio-demographic (the creation of a middle class in the past 10 years) factors to a greater extent. Thus, the state pays little attention to the problem of the transformation of labor values. Education has become more widespread, but its quality has decreased. On the whole, Russian society is in a transitional period. Developed economies have already obtained the basic characteristics of a post-industrial society, while at the same time, the post-industrial era in Russia is only in the beginning stages. Russia differs from developed economies in its economic structure and the profile of its professions. This is all reflected in the satisfaction of workers and is leading to a crisis in labor values. The development of post-industrial society has caused the creation of a corresponding system of labor values in which the values of self-expression, creativity, flexibility and self-sufficiency will occupy the most important places. On the other hand, the current deformation of the system of labor values requires the reproduction of value potential by forming a new (postindustrial) mentality in workers at every level. Thus, changes at the institutional level of management can become the prerequisites needed to create a new system of value. Consequently, it is necessary to develop a normative framework combining organizational, technological and socio-economic factors to cultivate values in career development.

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