LETTER | Dignity of persons and dignity of work

LETTER | One of the guiding core principles of transformation and success is to learn about the dignity of persons and the dignity of work. We live in an age that has lost sight of true dignity of work precisely because we have lost sight of the dignity of the worker.

The late Pope John Paul II in his introductory Encyclical letter entitled ‘On Human Work’ he wrote, “work means any activity by man, whether manual or intellectual, whatever its nature and circumstances, it means any human activity that can and must be recognised as work, in midst of many activities of which man is capable and to which he is predisposed by his very nature, by virtue of humanity itself.”

In historical capitalism and to this day, men and women are often reduced to mere instruments in a society that emphasised productivity over dignity of human persons, the worker.

The fact remains that everyone is a worker, irrespective of status and every type of work has its value in society.

Coming from the hotel industry, I see how housekeeping workers sweat and toil to keep the building clean and sanitised. They provide the value of health and safety which is not much appreciated due to labelling of status to the job concern. They are paid a meagre salary resulting in high turnovers.

Looking at the Malaysian experience today, human capital and dignity has been reduced and categorised by status, type of jobs, without a clear vision that the value of work, however mundane, has its contribution to society.

A prime minister is a worker, a corporate elite is a worker, so is the person who cleans and washes.

A cleaner who does dirty and dangerous jobs, cannot be reduced to so-called debate of whether to pay minimum wages. They need a career path and a dignified remuneration since they keep society safe and healthy.

A human being with talents and capabilities cannot be reduced to low-skill jobs and paid a meagre salary, but rather should be trained and mentored for bigger positions.

It is not just about building human capability through work, it is also about building an eco-system of human rights where a worker flourishes in conditions of equity and fairness.

Towards this end, where everyone is a dignified worker irrespective of status, it is imperative that political elites from the spectrum of the political divide, start paying attention to the dignity of human persons and the dignity of work instead of merely being focused on investment, trade, and finance, which has no value if human persons are merely regarded as instruments and machines and treated unfairly.

Therefore the Association for Community and Dialogue (ACID) urges Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob to help initiate the formation of a bipartisan vision of the dignity of human beings and the dignity of work.

RONALD BENJAMIN is ACID secretary.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.