Human resource
Also called: People as a resource · Topic: Human Capital: Education, Health and Demographic Dividend · NCERT: Class 8, Ch 7 "Factors of Production"; Class 11, Ch 4 "Human Capital Formation in India"
Meaning
Human resource means people seen as a resource for production, such as nurses, farmers, teachers and students. It stresses the number of people and their potential. Investment in education, health and training turns this human resource into human capital, meaning people with specialised skills, knowledge and expertise. A country turns land into factories, which are physical capital. In the same way, it turns human resources into human capital.
Example
India has a very large human resource: according to the Economic Survey 2024, 65% of Indians are below 35 years. A student who finishes schooling and then trains to become an engineer or a doctor has been turned from human resource into human capital.
Don't confuse with
- Human capital: human capital is the skills and knowledge built into people through investment. Human resource is the people themselves, before or apart from that investment.
- Labour: labour is the physical and mental effort used in production. Human resource is the people who can supply that effort.
Related concepts
- Human capital
- Skill
- Productivity
- Labour productivity
- Facilitators of human capital
- Continuous improvement