LABOR

Continued operation; work.
    The labor and skill of one man is frequently used in a partnership and valued as equal to the capital of another.
    When business has been done for another and suit is brought to recover a just reward, there is generally contained in the declaration, a count for work and labor.
    Where penitentiaries exist, persons who have committed crimes are sometimes condemned to be imprisoned therein at labor.

A term often used to broadly include labor union organizations, especially when referenced in a political context. For example: The candidate is supported by labor, and; The housing bill is opposed by farmers, contractors and labor.

Most interpretations of marxist socialism consider labor -- the effort of workers -- as the fundamental economic element of society.
   

This entry contains material from Bouvier's Legal Dictionary, a work published in the 1850's.