CL 6 Module 1

Consideration for business as a community

Consideration for business as a community

Every effort must be made to ensure that the enterprise is indeed a truly human community concerned about the needs, the activities, and the standing of each member

The common good as the criterion for the legitimation of business and the market

Profit is a regulator of the life of a business, but it is not the only one; other human and moral factors must also be considered, which, in the long term, are at least equally important for the life of a business

The principle of subsidiarity

The principle of subsidiarity must be respected: a community of a higher order should not interfere in the internal life of a community of a lower order, depriving the latter of its functions, but rather should support it in case of need and help to coordinate its activity with the activities of the rest of society, always with a view to the common good

The centrality of human development beyond economic development and "integral human development."

As an eminent specialist on this question has rightly said: "We cannot allow economics to be separated from human realities, nor development from the civilization in which it takes place. What counts for us is man—each man, each human group, and humanity as a whole

Business as a noble vocation

It can be a fruitful source of prosperity for the areas in which it operates, especially if it sees the creation of jobs as an essential part of its service to the common good

Consideration for business as a community

Mater et Magistra, no.91

The common good as the criterion for the legitimation of business and the market

Centesimus Annus, no.35

The principle of subsidiarity

Centesimus Annus, no.48

The centrality of human development beyond economic development and "integral human development."

Populorum Progressio, no.14

Business as a noble vocation

Laudato Si, no.129

The primary goal of any business enterprise should be the well-being of the human person, not the pursuit of profit.

Perhaps this is the most important implication of this principle for business ethics. However, this basic principle may not be suitable in our culture, particularly for corporate shareholders, but it is the foundation for any Catholic business ethic.

There must be mutual respect between the owner and the worker.

Workers have an obligation to honor agreements with owners, and owners have an obligation to respect their workers and recognize the inherent dignity of their labor.

Pope Leo XIII

wrote On the Condition of Labor (1891)

Pope Leo XIII

who said "Each requires the other; capital (understood as owners) cannot do without labor nor labor without capital."

Upholding human dignity does not end with employees; it extends to relationships with customers, shareholders, suppliers, subcontractors, and any other stakeholders.

Each must be treated with dignity and respect. The great and principal obligation is to give everyone that which is just. On the other hand, everyone who exercises pressure for the sake of gaining upon the needy and destitute and making one's profit out of the need of another is condemned by all laws, human and divine.