Wastage of Human Labor

The film Wastage of Human Resources discusses the problems with mortality and the dangers of labor that affects the size of the labor force. The focus of the film is about death and disease in the workforce and future work force. It highlights examples of common deaths of children and risk factors involved in working in an industrial plant. It also discusses broad risks to the entire population such as war, which can severely reduce the working population. This video is useful to a modern class because it shows the change in attitude towards workplace safety and the growing importance of maintaining a healthy labor force.

This film was made just after World War II in 1947 and describes the human element in the postindustrial society. Instead of focusing on automation and decentralization of factories, the film describes the working population and how companies should focus on creating a safe environment for its workers. This video is valuable because it demonstrates how workplace safety became very important after the war due to the significant decrease in the working population. It is also very interesting that the video discusses death rate among infants even though they will not be part of the workforce for at least 18 years.

The film follows a progression throughout the early life a potential worker and describes the risk factors associated with each age. The film was recorded during the postindustrial period, yet does not describe the change in machinery and factories. It is a great film to use to address the other side of the postindustrial revolution, the human element. The information society focuses heavily on machines and technology, but this video addresses the individuals affected by the change of the information society. This video provides the viewer and in-depth look at information society through the lens of the individuals living through this period. It shows the growing importance of the labor force and their safety.

https://archive.org/details/Wastageo1947