what is labour in economics

In economics, labor refers to the general body of wage earners, which includes all those who work for gain within the labor market, whether as employees, employers, or as self-employed, and it includes the unemployed who are seeking work. Labor economics is the study of the labor force as an element in the process of production, which involves the study of all that affects these workers before, during, and after their working lives, such as childcare, education, pay and incentives, fertility, discrimination, their non-work time, and pension reforms. Labor markets function through the interaction of workers and employers and can be bounded or be global. Labor economics also concerns itself with the mobility of workers within and across such markets and at times of crises labor economics can also help us to understand, and provide solutions to, the problems caused by economic shocks such as recessions or global pandemics.