Unemployment

The issue of unemployment in the social doctrine of the Church, to be understood, needs first to define the meaning of work in people's lives. In Laborem excercens, work is considered: a universal vocation; an inalienable right; and a duty, a moral obligation. This entry is intended to share the Church's thinking on these three aspects. As a universal vocation, since the human being is called to work from the beginning of his being on the earth, the absence of work prevents people from fulfilling themself, from translating their potential into works, and deriving satisfaction from it. As a right, unemployment leads people into a state of severe discomfort, as they cannot guarantee the satisfaction of their own needs and those of the people they have in charge. Finally, it is also a moral obligation because it is the primary tool people have to be able to contribute to the common good and, for this reason, all those conducts aimed at obtaining money and services without providing their contribution to the community, such as delinquent behaviors but also access to subsidies not fully justified by an emergency.