Alyosha helps by lifting up the blocks, and just then the rail clangs, signaling the end of the work day. In this section of One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, we see the value placed upon and struggle over work. For the camp officials and Soviet government, work is a commodity. Its value is something to be haggled over by squad leaders and bookkeepers. In many ways, this understanding of work as a measurable commodity is used as a means of oppression against the prisoners.
Work is measured and distributed, as are necessities like food and rest time.
But because of this, prisoners, such as squad leader Tiurin, use this commodication of work for their own benefits - using other commodities like food and tobacco to bribe officials and have the value placed on a certain task changed or increased. By accepting and trading upon the official understanding of work, the prisoners can find a means of a degree of resistance. For Shukhov, however, work's primary value is as an act. Work and the practice of the trade provides Shukhov with a means of self-respect. One example of this is the woman whom Tiurin helped be transferred from a hard labor squad to a tailoring shop, trading upon the commodification of work and in doing so saving the woman's life.