May 2, 2004 / 22:00 pm
In his message for Labor Day (celebrated in many parts of the world on May 1, the feast of St. Joseph the Worker), Cardinal Pedro Rubiano, Archbishop of Bogota, called on authorities and business leaders to renew their “commitment and obligation to respect the dignity of their employees” because “the dignity of each employee is inalienable.”
The Cardinal explained that “the international celebration of labor day and the feast of St. Joseph the Worker on May 1st, provides us an opportunity to greet with special affection all workers in Colombia.”
“The Church recognizes and values the importance and dignity of human work as a source of progress and social wellbeing, as it constitutes a fundamental dimension of the existence of man on the earth,” said the Cardinal, adding that “this was the reason why Pope Pius XII in 1952 wanted to offer Christian workers a model and protector in the person of the glorious Patriarch St. Joseph, in his role as worker.”
“God has ordained and blessed work,” he continued, and He has “given man intelligence and a way to continue His work.” Nevertheless, “throughout history, these concepts have been clouded and workers have been denied their fundamental rights, such as the right to employment and to a just wage.”