Young people have a right to work with dignity, Pope says

December 14, 2015

“Work is not a gift to be kindly granted to the select few: it is a right for all!” Those were the words of Pope Francis, in a December 14 address to members of an Italian group working to help young people find productive employment.

“When there is no work, dignity is at risk, as unemployment not only prevents you from putting food on the table; it also makes you feel unworthy of earning a living,” the Pope said to the members of the Progetto Policoro, an initiative that began in southern Italy and has spread around the country. The Pope said that the task of finding employment for young people is closely tied to the work of evangelization, “through the sanctifying value of work.” He cautioned, however, that the goal must be not to find “any” work—“not work that exploits, crushing, humiliating, mortifying, but the kind of work that makes a man truly free: work that accords with man’s noble dignity.”

 

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Further information:

• Pope Francis: work in accord with human dignity (Vatican Radio)
• The Policoro Project: in search of dignified and liberating work (VIS)