How to treat employees

History records the names of several benevolent industrialists or businessmen who, inspired by Christian ideals, tried to relieve the hardships of their employees.

One outstanding example of this category, which seems to be on its way to extinction, was Leo Harmel (1899-1915) - a French industrialist, who owned a textile factory and whose vision was to form a family of workers in which everyone was treated with due respect.

In 1885, leading 100 French capitalists, Harmel presented to Pope Leo XIII a petition signed by 1,000 Catholic employers in which they stated that "the Church alone can establish in the industrial family the practice of justice and charity".

Leo's response was: "Go home and bring back your employees and workers." Harmel did not turn a deaf ear, returning each year with large groups of workers who begged the Pope to lend his voice to the defence of workers. In 1889, just two years before the Pontiff's famous encyclical, 1,000 workers took part in a pilgrimage to Rome.

In 1875, Harmel introduced family allowances, a novelty at the time of the post-industrial revolution, and urged other industrialists to do the same. In 1891, Harmel founded the French Federation of Catholic Employers, which 40 years later (1933) had 5,800 members.

Relations between employers and employees have not been smooth throughout history, and many of Harmel's initiatives would today be considered as a rare exception. Were he to come back to life and visit our country he would not be elated to find so few following his example of friendship and solidarity.

One of the worst evils associated with recession is unemployment. In such circumstances, few jobs are available and many employees become redundant. Employers attempt to reduce staff numbers to the lowest level possible, and in the process, the quality of working conditions often declines.

Besides, as the problem of unemployment becomes more and more severe, workers themselves often become increasingly concerned with their immediate job security than with conditions of work and their relationships with employers.

Whatever the economic situation, it should be clear to everybody that work is inseparable from the person who carries it out. It cannot be considered only from an economic point of view, ignoring the human needs of the people involved.

In every workshop or office, conditions of work which respect the personal character and dignity of the worker should be fostered. However, this cannot happen unless staff members are engaged in jobs which enable them to be respected - free of discrimination and unfair treatment. However, employees should always be mindful of their duties to their employer and avoid creating unnecessary problems.

It is a general rule of good Christian behaviour that all those given authority over others are bound, in so far as possible, to see to the welfare of those under their wing. They are required to promote the integral good of the people at their service without failing to respect their human dignity.

Therefore, ways and means must be found through which a particular job can best be accomplished with a minimum of effort and a maximum of individual satisfaction. Perhaps the first step should be to establish a better line of communication between employees and management.

In spite of these principles, it is not uncommon, particularly in small and medium-sized enterprises, for too much pressure to be exerted by domineering bosses who force an employee, willy-nilly, to bow his head. This is capable of causing physical or emotional damage. Worse still, some add insult to injury by raising their voice and hurling offensive and humiliating language at their submissive dependants.

Where managers treat their staff in an inhumane manner, it is not surprising that they provoke reaction which may prove to be equally hurtful. The result is that relations between employer and employee become strained - creating a situation which does not in any way enhance productivity or efficiency.

In democratic countries, trade unions which act responsibly are normally the watchdogs. They have the unenviable task of forestalling the ill-treatment of employees and redressing injustices - infringements of individual rights, sex discrimination and unethical behaviour - committed against employees.

In his most recent encyclical Caritas in Veritate Pope Benedict lauds the efforts of unions when it comes to the protection of the workers' rights, and hints at their intervention, "especially on behalf of exploited and unrepresentative workers, whose woeful condition is often ignored by the distracted eye of society".

The Church still cares about the rights of employees. But we would be so much better off if more modern-day employers followed Harmel's example.