Meaning of work and its relationship to property ownership (Notes)
Work may also be defined as the carrying out of tasks requiring the expenditure of mental and physical effort, which has as its objective the production of goods and services that cater to human needs. An occupation, or job, is work that is done in exchange for a regular wage, or salary. In all cultures, work is the basis of the economic system, or economy. The economy consists of institutions that provide for the production and distribution of goods and services.
For many people work is what they are paid for, but often people do not stop working when they are not paid for it, for there is both paid work and unpaid work. Hence, work can be described as a “purposeful activity”. Work is an essential part of being alive. Your work is your identity, it tells who you are. People don’t work for the sake of working; they are working for a car, a new house, a holiday, etc.
Work is a universal human activity; he is the only being capable of work. People everywhere engage in physical and mental activities that enhance the physical and social survival of themselves and others. Work distinguishes man from brutes (animals) just as much as thought, language, freedom, etc. By virtue of work, man creates for himself his own environment, procures food and clothing for himself, produces means of communication, transportation, etc. Therefore, work constitutes a specific, essential dimension of man, and its study is of paramount importance and necessary, if a full comprehension of man’s being is to be obtained.
Relationship between work and property ownership
The relationship between work and property ownership is the fact that most people get the income and property they need by working for it. Human beings have a need and right to hold some things as their own with the assurance that no other person may rightfully deprive them of what they hold as their own. Private ownership of property is necessary for us to live a descent life. The right to private ownership of property is an important element in forming a just economic policy, because that right enlarges our capacity for creativity and initiative. Property ownership can either be public (belonging to the community) or private (property in individual hands).
Characteristics and purpose of work
Money – A wage or salary is the main resource many people depend on to meet their needs. Without such an income, anxieties about coping with day to day life tend to multiply.
Activity level – Work often provides a basis for the acquisition and exercise of skills and capacities. Even where work is routine, it offers a structured environment in which a person’s energies may be absorbed. Without it, the opportunity to exercise such skills and capacities may be reduced.
Variety – Work provides access to contexts that contrast with domestic surroundings. In the working environment, even when the tasks are relatively dull, individuals may enjoy doing something different from home chores.
Temporal structure – For people in regular employment, the day is usually organized around the rhythm of work. While this may sometimes be oppressive, it provides a sense of direction in daily activities. Those who are out of work frequently find boredom a major problem and develop a sense of apathy about time.
Social contacts – the work environment often provides friendship and opportunities to participate in shared activities with others. Separated from the work setting, a person’s circle of possible friends and acquaintances is likely to dwindle.
Personal identity – Work is usually valued for the sense of stable social identity it offers. For men in particular, self-esteem is often bound up with the economic contribution they make to the maintenance of the household. In addition, job conditions, such as the opportunity to work in jobs that are challenging, not routinized, and not subject and not subject to close supervision, are known to affect a person’s sense of self-worth.
Through work man must earn his daily bread (cf. Ps 127 (128):2; cf. also Gen 3:17-19; Prov. 10:22; Ex 1:8-14; Jer 22:13) and contribute to the continual advance of science and technology and, above all, to elevating unceasingly the cultural and moral level of the society within which he lives in community with those who belong to the same family. And work means any activity by man, whether manual or intellectual, whatever its nature or circumstances; it means any human activity that can and must be recognized as work, in the midst of all the many activities of which man is capable and to which he is predisposed by his very nature, by virtue of humanity itself. Man is made to be in the visible universe an image and likeness of God himself (Cf. Gen 1:26.), and he is placed in it in order to subdue the earth (cf. Gen 1:28). From the beginning therefore he is called to work. Work is one of the characteristics that distinguish man from the rest of creatures, whose activity for sustaining their lives cannot be called work. Only man is capable of work, and only man works, at the same time by work occupying his existence on earth. Thus work bears a particular mark of man and of humanity, the mark of a person operating within a community of persons. And this mark decides its interior characteristics; in a sense it constitutes its very nature.
The changing nature of work
The globalizing of economic production, together with the spread of information technology, is altering the nature of jobs most people do. The proportion of people working in blue collar jobs (manual workers) in industrial countries has progressively fallen. New jobs have been created in offices and in service centres such as supermarkets and airports. The nature of the work most people do and the role of work in our lives, like so many other aspects of the societies in which we live, are undergoing major changes. The chief reasons are global economic competition, the widespread introduction of information technology and computerization, and the large scale entry of women into the workforce.
There have been changes in industrial production. The concept of industrial automation, or programmable machinery, was introduced in the mid-1800s, when Christopher Spencer, an American, invented the automat, a programmable lathe that made screws, nuts, and gears.
Automation has thus far affected relatively few industries, but with advances in the design of industrial robots, its impact is certain to become greater. A robot is an automatic device that can perform functions ordinarily done by human workers. Robots were first introduced into industry in 1946. Robots today can execute numerous tasks like welding, spray painting, and lifting and carrying parts, and so on.
In the light of the impact the global economy and the demand for a ‘flexible’ labour force, some sociologists and economists have argued that more and more people in the future will become “portfolio workers”. They will have a “skill portfolio” a number of different job skills and credentials which they will use to move between several jobs during the course of their working lives. Only a relatively small proportion of workers will have continuous “careers” in the current sense.
In the positive sense, workers will not be stuck in the same job for years and will be able to plan their work lives in a creative way. Others hold that “flexibility” in practice means that organizations can hire and fire more or less at will, undermining any sense of security their workers might have. Employers will only have a short term commitment to their workforces and will be able to minimize the paying of extra benefits.
Problems of work
Workers in the labour force are faced with a number of problems including the following:
a) Dangerous or unfavourable working conditions
In a capitalist economy management keeps low labour costs in order to get greater profits. Low labour costs mean that workers receive low wages, have inferior or non existent fringe benefits such as health care and work in unhealthy conditions. For example, mines and factories are extremely unsafe. Such harmful working conditions have led to job-induced illnesses though they are impossible to ascertain exactly, primarily because for some diseases it takes many years of exposure to affect the skin, lungs, blood chemistry, nervous system, or various organs. Some occupational diseases have led to physical handicaps.
b) The control of workers
Work in industries is sometimes difficult, often tedious and usually boring. There is effort to increase worker efficiency and therefore increase profits meaning that workers develop a very limited range of skills, their knowledge is severely curtailed. Specialization makes workers highly susceptible to automation and being easily replaced by cheaper workers. There is a hierarchy of authority or bureaucracy to control workers and work settings and to give orders to those below and take responsibility for their actions. Workers who hope to get any promotion in the organization must become obedient rule followers who do not question authority. If workers demand for higher wages, safe working conditions, or benefits, management can threaten to replace them with cheaper labour.
c) Discrimination in the workplace
Women and minorities have long been the objects of discrimination in the workplace in many societies. At times men tend to express seniority rights, there are restrictions in job placement, women have limited opportunities for advancement, and lower pay for equal work. There is occupational segregation which accounts for women’s low average earnings. Despite the fact that women constitute more than one-third of the world's labour force, in general they remain concentrated in a limited number of traditional occupations, many of which do not require highly technical qualifications and most of which are low paid.
The extreme occupational segregation of women in our society makes for a crucial difference between women’s poverty and men’s. For men, poverty is often a consequence of unemployment, and it is curable by getting a job. But for women, concentrated in the low-wage stratum of the work force, a job may not be a solution to poverty. Many women are involved with “service work” which includes nurses’ aides, school teachers, waitresses, etc. However, as countries have become industrialized, more women have obtained jobs in more occupations. In other cases discrimination is based on difference in races, cultural background, religious background, etc.
d) Alienation
This is the separation of human beings from each other, from themselves, and from the products they create. According to Karl Marx, a capitalist, worker alienation occurs because workers do not have any control over their labour, because they are manipulated by managers, because they tend to work in impersonal settings, and because they work at specialized tasks. Under these circumstances workers use only a fraction of their talents and have no pride in their own creativity and in the final product. In absence of satisfaction and personal fulfilment work becomes meaningless. For many workers, the alienation remains at a personal level and is manifested by higher worker dissatisfaction, absenteeism, and alcohol or other drug abuse on the job.
e) Unemployment
Unemployment refers to enforced idleness of wage earners who are able and willing to work but cannot find jobs. The experience of unemployment – being unable to find a job when one wants it is still a largely negative one.
Unemployment rates have shot up in many countries. And within countries, unemployment is not equally distributed. It varies by race or ethnic background, by age, and by industry and geographic region. A substantial proportion of young people are among the long term unemployed, again especially among the minority groups. Few young people entering the labour force find a job right away; workers may temporarily leave their jobs to seek new work; some may be on strike; others suffer from long term illness; and still others are illiterate or without the skills to perform useful work.
“Unemployment is the worst evil, in the sense that the unemployed feel that they have fallen out of common life, they are not wanted, that is the thing that has the power to corrupt the soul of any man”. (William Temple)
There are personal and social costs of unemployment. If a person loses a job, their sense of belonging disappears, they can feel humiliated, angry, worthless, depressed, etc. Health problems increase; there is loss of self esteem; families suffer extra strain; there are increases in the abuse of alcohol and drugs, violence and suicide. Unemployment affects a person’s whole life and the lives of those close to him or her. As work is a structuring element in a person’s psychological makeup, the experience of unemployment is often disorientating.
In capitalist societies unemployment is kept relatively high because high unemployment deflates wages and therefore increases profits. When there are unemployed people willing to work, workers will not make inordinate demands for higher wages for fear that they will be replaced by cheaper labour.
In developing nations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America a much more serious and widespread problem is underemployment that is, people are employed only part time or at work that is inefficient or unproductive, with a correspondingly low income that is insufficient to meet their needs. Much of the unemployment and underemployment in developing nations has accompanied migration from rural to larger urban centres in search of jobs.
The Types of unemployment
Economists have described the causes and types of unemployment as frictional, seasonal, structural, and cyclical.
i. Frictional unemployment
This arises because workers seeking jobs do not find them immediately; while looking for work they are counted as unemployed. Friction in this case refers to the incongruity between the demand for and supply of labour. The amount of frictional unemployment depends on the frequency with which workers change jobs and the time it takes to find new ones. This type of unemployment could be reduced somewhat by more efficient placement services. When workers are free to quit or change their jobs, however, some frictional unemployment will always be present.
ii. Seasonal unemployment
This occurs when industries have a slow season, such as construction and other outdoor work in winter or rainy season. It also occurs at the end of the school or academic year, when large numbers of students and fresh graduates look for work. Unemployment rates in many parts of the world such as Africa and India are difficult to estimate because many people work in temporary or part time jobs. Few workers are permanently unemployed, but seasonally or marginally employed people such as agricultural labourers are often under employed. State and national governments have established fairly successful rural employment plans that hire labour to build roads and other public works.
iii. Structural unemployment
This arises from an imbalance between the kinds of workers wanted by employers and the kinds of workers looking for jobs. The imbalances may be caused by inadequacy in skills, location, or personal characteristics. Technological developments, for example, necessitate new skills in many industries, leaving those workers who have outdated skills without a job. A plant in a declining industry may close down or move to another area, throwing out of work those employees who are unable or unwilling to move. Workers with inadequate education or training and young workers with little or no experience may be unable to get jobs because employers believe that these employees would not produce enough to be worth paying the legal minimum wage or the rate agreed on with the union.
On the other hand, even highly trained workers can be unemployed; this can happen, for example, when the large numbers of new graduates with degrees in a given field exceed the number of jobs available in those fields. If employers practice illegal job discrimination against any group because of sex, race, religion, age, or national origin, a high unemployment rate for these workers could result even when jobs are plentiful.
iv. Cyclical unemployment
Cyclical unemployment occurs when the economy goes into a recession. It results from a general lack of demand for labour. Jobs disappear as occupations become obsolete, business close in the face of foreign competition or economic recession and companies “downsize” to become more profitable. When the business cycle turns downward, demand for goods and services drops; consequently, workers are laid off. The basic causes of cyclical unemployment are decreases in the levels of consumption, investment, or government spending in the economy, or a decrease in the demand for goods and services exported to other countries. As national spending and production levels fall, some employers begin to lay off workers. Cyclical unemployment varies greatly according to the health of the economy.
Task to do
a. What are the effects of unemployment?
b. How can we overcome unemployment in our society today?
The obligation and dignity of work (value of work)
The Church finds in the very first pages of the Book of Genesis the source of her conviction that work is a fundamental dimension of human existence on earth. An analysis of these texts makes us aware that they express-sometimes in an archaic way of manifesting thought the fundamental truths about man, in the context of the mystery of creation itself. These truths are decisive for man from the very beginning, and at the same time they trace out the main lines of his earthly existence, both in the state of original justice and also after the breaking, caused by sin, of the Creator's original covenant with creation in man.
When man, who had been created "in the image of God. Male and female", hears the words: "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it", even though these words do not refer directly and explicitly to work, beyond any doubt they indirectly indicate it as an activity for man to carry out in the world. Indeed, they show its very deepest essence. Man is the image of God partly through the mandate received from his Creator to subdue, to dominate, the earth. In carrying out this mandate, man, every human being, reflects the very action of the Creator of the universe.
Work understood as a "transitive" activity, that is to say an activity beginning in the human subject and directed towards an external object, presupposes a specific dominion by man over "the earth", and in its turn it confirms and develops this dominion. It is clear that the term "the earth" of which the biblical text speaks is to be understood in the first place as that fragment of the visible universe that man inhabits. By extension, however, it can be understood as the whole of the visible world insofar as it comes within the range of man's influence and of his striving to satisfy his needs. The expression "subdue the earth" has an immense range. It means all the resources that the earth (and indirectly the visible world) contains and which, through the conscious activity of man, can be discovered and used for his ends. And so these words, placed at the beginning of the Bible, never cease to be relevant.
Work in the Objective Sense: Technology
This universality and, at the same time, this multiplicity of the process of "subduing the earth" throw light upon human work, because man's dominion over the earth is achieved in and by means of work. There thus emerges the meaning of work in an objective sense, which finds expression in the various epochs of culture and civilization. Man dominates the earth by the very fact of domesticating animals, rearing them and obtaining from them the food and clothing he needs, and by the fact of being able to extract various natural resources from the earth and the seas. But man "subdues the earth" much more when he begins to cultivate it and then to transform its products, adapting them to his own use. Thus agriculture constitutes through human work a primary field of economic activity and an indispensable factor of production.
Industry in its turn will always consist in linking the earth's riches-whether nature's living resources, or the products of agriculture, or the mineral or chemical resources-with man's work, whether physical or intellectual. This is also in a sense true in the sphere of what are called service industries, and also in the sphere of research, pure or applied.
In industry and agriculture man's work has today in many cases ceased to be mainly manual, for the toil of human hands and muscles is aided by more and more highly perfected machinery.
Not only in industry but also in agriculture we are witnessing the transformations made possible by the gradual development of science and technology. Historically speaking, this, taken as a whole, has caused great changes in civilization, from the beginning of the "industrial era" to the successive phases of development through new technologies, such as the electronics and the microprocessor technology in recent years.
While it may seem that in the industrial process it is the machine that "works" and man merely supervises it, making it function and keeping it going in various ways, it is also true that for this very reason industrial development provides grounds for re-proposing in new ways the question of human work. Both the original industrialization that gave rise to what is called the worker question and the subsequent industrial and post-industrial changes show in an eloquent manner that, even in the age of ever more mechanized "work", the proper subject of work continues to be man.
Work in the Subjective Sense: Man as the Subject of Work
Man has to subdue the earth and dominate it, because as the "image of God" he is a person, that is to say, a subjective being capable of acting in a planned and rational way, capable of deciding about himself, and with a tendency to self-realization. As a person, man is therefore the subject of work. As a person he works, he performs various actions belonging to the work process; independently of their objective content, these actions must all serve to realize his humanity, to fulfil the calling to be a person that is his by reason of his very humanity.
And so this "dominion" spoken of in the biblical text being meditated upon here refers not only to the objective dimension of work but at the same time introduces us to an understanding of its subjective dimension. Understood as a process whereby man and the human race subdue the earth, work corresponds to this basic biblical concept only when throughout the process man manifests himself and confirms himself as the one who "dominates". This dominion, in a certain sense, refers to the subjective dimension even more than to the objective one: this dimension conditions the very ethical nature of work. In fact there is no doubt that human work has an ethical value of its own, which clearly and directly remain linked to the fact that the one who carries it out is a person, a conscious and free subject, that is to say a subject that decides about himself.
The ancient world introduced its own typical differentiation of people into classes according to the type of work done. Work which demanded from the worker the exercise of physical strength, the work of muscles and hands, was considered unworthy of free men, and was therefore given to slaves. By broadening certain aspects that already belonged to the Old Testament, Christianity brought about a fundamental change of ideas in this field, taking the whole content of the Gospel message as its point of departure, especially the fact that the one who, while being God, became like us in all things devoted most of the years of his life on earth to manual work at the carpenter's bench. This circumstance constitutes in itself the most eloquent "Gospel of work", showing that the basis for determining the value of human work is not primarily the kind of work being done but the fact that the one who is doing it is a person. The sources of the dignity of work are to be sought primarily in the subjective dimension, not in the objective one.
Such a concept practically does away with the very basis of the ancient differentiation of people into classes according to the kind of work done. This does not mean that, from the objective point of view, human work cannot and must not be rated and qualified in any way. It only means that the primary basis of the value of work is man himself, who is its subject. This leads immediately to a very important conclusion of an ethical nature: however true it may be that man is destined for work and called to it, in the first place work is "for man" and not man "for work". Through this conclusion one rightly comes to recognize the pre-eminence of the subjective meaning of work over the objective one.
Need for labour rest
Traditionally in our society Sunday has been a day of rest but over the last few years this has changed considerably. Many people believe that whether people are religious or not, society needs a publicly expressed day of rest and ‘re-creation’ such as the Christian Sunday has traditionally provided. Sunday, which should be a day when people can relax, has become like any other day.
Some people are made to work in society’s endless obsession with buying, spending and acquiring things. Christians argue that what really matters is not materialism and consumerism but improving the quality of people’s lives, and a day of leisure can help to do this. Both work and leisure are good and necessary.
Studies conducted in countries around the world demonstrate that people can actually work themselves to death. Factors such as workplace stress and long hours contribute to the risk of death from overwork. Workers’ priorities are changing, and more people are trading long work hours and financial rewards for increased time for themselves, their families, and their leisure activities.
Some specialists believe that because of “always on, always connected” technology, work life has diminished as employees are continuously available, connected, and expected to work 24 hours a day and for 7 days a week (24/7). There are some common excuses people give for working so much such as, "I want to make sure I keep my job." The recession pushes some to work harder
than ever, but overextending yourself won't save your job, and it's unethical. Concerns exist that work life balance may be taking a back seat because of increasing pressures from global economic competition, among other factors. Too much work has led to stress induced errors and high levels of worker burnout. “Work is made for man and not man for work”.
Since all work requires effort, man’s physical constitution requires that he rests. Rest is not the same thing as doing nothing, which is inactivity. Rather it consists in a change of activity so as to give to the particular operative faculty time for relaxation and a renewal of energy. This means that vacations and weekend rest are time to give to the body and to the mind some refreshment.
They thus become part of a person’s moral responsibility. Leisure time is a human need that should neither be neglected nor abused.
The ethics of work
Work ethic is a set of values based on hard work and diligence. It is also a belief in the moral benefit of work and its ability to enhance character. Work ethics include not only how one feels about their job, career or vocation, but also how one does his/her job or responsibilities. This involves attitude, behaviour, respect, communication, and interaction; how one gets along with others. A work ethic may also include; honesty and accountability, being reliable, having initiative, or pursuing new skills. Work ethics demonstrate many things about whom and how a person is.
Essentially, work ethics break down to what one does or would do in a particular situation. Work ethics is not just hard work but also a set of accompanying virtues.
The work ethic is a cultural norm that advocates being personally accountable and responsible for the work that one does and is based on a belief that work has intrinsic value. The term is often applied to characteristics of people, both at work and at play. In sports, for example, work ethic is frequently mentioned as a characteristic of good players. Regardless of the context, work ethic is usually associated with people who work hard and do a good job.
Workers exhibiting a good work ethic in theory should be selected for better positions, more responsibility and ultimately promotion. Workers who fail to exhibit a good work ethic may be regarded as failing to provide fair value for the wage the employer is paying them and should not be promoted or placed in positions of greater responsibility.
Work ethics is also about how you treat yourself at work and beyond. You're not being fair to others and yourself if you haven't had a vacation in a long time, or if you force yourself to work when you've got the flu. You're also not being fair to others and yourself if you spend so much time being a good manager that you're not able to be a good parent, spouse, or friend. You can't do your job to the best of your ability if you're thoroughly exhausted, and that's not fair to your co-workers or your employer.
Work ethics, such as honesty (not lying, cheating, and stealing), doing a job well, valuing what one does, having a sense of purpose and feeling/being a part of a greater vision or plan is vital.
Philosophically, if one does not have proper work ethics, a person’s conscience may be bothered.
People for the most part have good work ethic(s); we should not only want to do, but desire to do the proper thing in a given situation. Work ethics are intrinsic; they come from within. A question may involve where they came from, if they come from within. Philosophically, this may lead to various perspectives; however, the truth about work ethics, and where they come from are answered from a Christian worldview. Work ethics come from God the creator. God made humans in His image, and His word proclaims these various work ethics honesty, integrity, etc.
The Christian worldview holds fundamentally to two central work ethics humility and the treatment of others. Humility involves servitude, which emphasizes placing other peoples need before one’s own. Treating others with decency and respect equate to the golden rule. The treatment of others involves loving your neighbour, loving your enemy, doing good to those who dislike you. It involves valuing others, and knowing they have worth.
In conclusion, work brings to light some fundamental aspects of man’s being: a being which is gifted with body and spirit. In fact, work is the fruit of a hand and mind, a mind that is intelligent and free. Work is a transformation which evidences the creative power of man. Work manifests the social character of man which is evident in any form of work. Man does not only work for himself, but also and above all for others. Finally, work reveals another aspect of man’s being: his continual self transcendence. Man is never satisfied with his work, or with his machinery. He searches continually to better the modes of production.
Task: What is the relevance of work ethics in your respective profession or field as an Economist, a Business Administrator, a Public Relations Manager, etc.? Do we need ethics at the workplace?
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Christine W. Gichure (1997): Basic concepts in Ethics. With an outline of different methods in Contemporary Moral Philosophy, Nairobi, Focus Publications Ltd.
Milton A. Gonsalvess (1996): Fagothey’s Right and Reason, Ethics in Theory and Practice, 9th ed.; London, Merill Publication company.
Giddens Anthony & Duneier Mitchell: Introduction to sociology
John Paul II: Laborem Exercens (encyclical on Human work).
Stanley Eitzen D. et al (1989): Social Problems, 4th ed.;
Jenkins J. (1997): Contemporary Moral Issues, 3rd ed.; Oxford, Heinemann Educational Publishers.
John II (1981): Laborem Exercens (encyclical on Human work)
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