Consider the following sentence:
"This concept is the first contribution that Baudrillard makes to the Marxian value framework."
I have understood that if "that" is used as a relative pronoun that modifies a noun that act as object, it can be omitted.
“that Baudrillard makes” serves a relative pronoun that modifies a noun (contribution).
“the contribution” is an object.
Therefore can “that” actually be omitted. Right? My grammar source takes the example:
"The work (that / which) she does for this company is much appreciated."
However, my proof-reader of a recent article has consistently added "that" to such sentences as the "The concept is the first…". Can anyone explain this to me?
A similar question has been asked before at UsingEnglish: But I am still unsure…?
"That" can be omitted, but it does make it easier to understand. That's probably why the proofreader is inserting it.