J.-E. Cairnes : groupes non concurrents et organisation industrielle

J.-E. Cairnes developed an original analysis of the segmentation of the labour market within the first part of its Principles of political economy, newly expounded. This analysis is based upon the concept of a non-competing group which can be defined as a group whose members, by their education or social position, are in competition with each other in the labour market, but not with members of another group. By according an important role to education and learning-by-doing in the constitution of such groups, Cairnes admits an evolutionary perspective of the segmentation of the labour market, which leads to modern analysis of industrial organisation and imperfect competition.