Working Conditions

Rights and Responsibilities

Working conditions and other employer responsibilities depend on the perceived rights of employees. There are at least two sources of rights—natural rights and civil rights. Natural rights are those rights that are considered universal and attributable to human beings vis-àvis their human status, regardless of societal norms. Civil rights, on the other hand, exist as created by a particular society's legal system. They tend to be relatively clear: They are codified and exist in writing. While there can be overlap between legal and natural rights—such as in the Bill of Rights of the U.S. Constitution—many legal rights are recognized only by particular societies and are not presumed to be natural rights. Many legal rights are, therefore, only culturally sanctioned and are thereby limited in their application.

Civil rights are central to the relationship between employees and employers. In most countries around the world today, local laws identify the legal rights of employees—some of which are positive (and therefore generally require the provision of real resources), while others are negative (and require only that others not interfere with the pursuit of a person's exercise of his or her rights). For example, in countries that require certain employee benefits (i.e., health care, vacation, etc.), the positive legal right of employees to those benefits is accompanied by the responsibility of employers to provide those benefits. Similarly, in countries where employees have a legal right to form unions, this negative right imposes on employers the obligation not to interfere with the formation of employee unions. The right to form unions can also imply a positive right, in that it can impose on employers the duty to negotiate with their employees' unions.

A significant amount of the debate surrounding working conditions stems from conflicting views on employee and employer rights and responsibilities. Do people have a right to work? What working conditions are workers entitled to? If these entitlements exist, do they derive from natural law or civil law? For example, might workers have a natural right to a workplace free of physical beatings by employers but only a legal right to sanitary facilities?

Answers to these sorts of questions determine the kinds of working conditions to which employees should reasonably be entitled. Whereas most people would likely agree that natural rights and legal rights should be respected, there is considerable disagreement as to the extent of natural and legal entitlements, particularly across cultural boundaries. While there are some bright-line distinctions, there are many areas that remain ambiguous.

Most people, for example, tend to agree that violence leading to physical harm should not be permitted in the workplace. In contrast, it is unlikely that many people—if anyone—would contend that the provision of recreational facilities is a right that employees are entitled to. There are, however, many other issues that generate considerable controversy. Day care for infants is one of these issues. More and more in the United States, day care is becoming a necessity because couples are having to rely on income from both spouses. Having children can create an impediment to both spouses working and can create additional financial burdens on the family. Day care is therefore viewed by some people as a “right,” because of its practical necessity for them to be able to work. Other people nevertheless maintain that, in the absence of a legal guarantee, it remains a [Page 2256]matter to be determined through employer-employee negotiations.

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