According to some accounts, the right to work denotes a basic human right; to others, it aims to remove the limitations to employment imposed by unions or, alternatively, takes away employment protections that unions have fought to attain. More recently, the right to work has been invoked as part of efforts to ensure a just and equitable workplace free from discrimination or hazards. In different ways, each of these interpretations is grounded in an understanding of work as a necessary component of human dignity and human flourishing.

A right is a claim that an individual or group may make against a society or state. The claim is limited by what is morally correct or upholds standards of justice. For every right, there is a corresponding responsibility ...