The Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers
The economy must serve people, not the other way around. Work is more than a way to make a living; it is a form of continuing
participation in God’s creation. If the dignity of work is to be
protected, then the basic rights of workers must be respected--the
right to productive work, to decent and fair wages, to the organization
and joining of unions, to private property, and to economic
initiative.
Scripture
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Genesis 2:1-3
God rests on the seventh day. Genesis 2:15
God settles man in the garden of Eden to cultivate and care for it.-
Deuteronomy 5:13-15
The Sabbath is for everyone—all are allowed to rest from their work. -
Deuteronomy 14:28-29
The Lord blesses our work so that we may share its fruits with others. Deuteronomy 24:14-15
Do not withhold wages from your workers, for their livelihood depends on them.-
Sirach 34:26-27
To deprive an employee of wages is to commit murder. -
Isaiah 58:3-7
To observe religious practices, but oppress your workers is false worship. -
Jeremiah 22:13
Woe to him who treats his workers unjustly. -
Matthew 20:1-16
All workers should be paid a just and living wage. -
Mark 2:27
The Sabbath was made for people, not people for the Sabbath. -
Luke 3:10-14
Practice integrity in your work. -
Luke 12:13-21
One’s worth is not determined by an abundance of possessions. James 5:1-6
Those who become rich by abusing their workers have sinned against God.
Tradition
Work should be the setting for this rich personal growth, where many
aspects of life enter into play: creativity, planning for the future,
developing our talents, living out our values, relating to others,
giving glory to God. It follows that, in the reality of today's global
society, it is essential that "we continue to prioritize the goal of
access to steady employment for everyone," no matter the limited
interests of business and dubious economic reasoning. We were created
with a vocation to work. The goal should not be that technological
progress increasingly replace human work, for this would be detrimental
to humanity. Work is a necessity, part of the meaning of life on this
earth, a path to growth, human development and personal fulfillment.
Helping the poor financially must always be a provisional solution in
the face of pressing needs. The broader objective should always be to
allow them a dignified life through work. (Pope Francis, On Care for Our Common Home [Laudato Si'], nos. 127-28)
Growth in justice requires more than economic growth, while presupposing such growth: it requires decisions, programs, mechanisms and processes specifically geared to a better distribution of income, the creation of sources of employment and an integral promotion of the poor which goes beyond a simple welfare mentality. I am far from proposing an irresponsible populism, but the economy can no longer turn to remedies that are a new poison, such as attempting to increase profits by reducing the work force and thereby adding to the ranks of the excluded." (Pope Francis, The Joy of the Gospel [Evangelii Gaudium], no. 204)
I would like to remind everyone, especially governments engaged in boosting the world's economic and social assets, that the primary capital to be safeguarded and valued is man, the human person in his or her integrity: "Man is the source, the focus and the aim of all economic and social life." (Pope Benedict XVI, Charity in Truth [Caritas in Veritate], no. 25, quoting Second Vatican Council, The Church in the Modern World [Gaudium et Spes], no. 63)
In many cases, poverty results from a violation of the dignity of human work,
either because work opportunities are limited (through unemployment or
underemployment), or "because a low value is put on work and the
rights that flow from it, especially the right to a just wage and to
the personal security of the worker and his or her family." (Pope Benedict XVI, Charity in Truth [Caritas in Veritate], no. 63)
The obligation to earn one's bread by the sweat of one's brow also presumes the right to do so. A society in which this right is systematically denied, in which economic policies do not allow workers to reach satisfactory levels of employment, cannot be justified from an ethical point of view, nor can that society attain social peace. (St. John Paul II, The Hundredth Year [Centesimus Annus], no. 43)
All people have the right to economic initiative, to productive
work, to just wages and benefits, to decent working conditions, as well
as to organize and join unions or other associations. (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, A Catholic Framework for Economic Life, no. 5)
Work is, as has been said, an obligation, that is to say, a duty, on the part of man. .
. Man must work, both because the Creator has commanded it and because
of his own humanity, which requires work in order to be maintained and
developed. Man must work out of regard for others, especially his own
family, but also for the society he belongs to, the country of which he
is a child, and the whole human family of which he is a member, since
he is the heir to the work of generations and at the same time a sharer
in building the future of those who will come after him in the
succession of history. (St. John Paul II, On Human Work [Laborem Exercens], no. 16)
Work is a good thing for man-a good thing for his humanity-because through work man not only transforms nature, adapting it to his own needs, but he also achieves fulfillment as a human being and indeed, in a sense, becomes "more a human being.” (St. John Paul II, On Human Work [Laborem Exercens], no. 9)
All these rights, together with the need for the workers themselves to secure them, give rise to yet another right: the right of association, that
is to form associations for the purpose of defending the vital
interests of those employed in the various professions. These
associations are called labor or trade unions. (St. John Paul II, On Human Work [Laborem Exercens], no. 20)
As the Church solemnly reaffirmed in the recent Council, "the
beginning, the subject and the goal of all social institutions is and
must be the human person." All people have the right to work, to a
chance to develop their qualities and their personalities in the
exercise of their professions, to equitable remuneration which will
enable them and their families "to lead a worthy life on the material,
social, cultural and spiritual level" and to assistance in case of need
arising from sickness or age. (Blessed Paul VI, A Call to Action [Octogesima Adveniens], no. 14)