Since 2019, we have been highlighting our work in supporting an exciting project set up in Leeds Diocese by the Leeds Justice and Peace Commission, which aimed at engaging more 16-30 year olds around the issue of Catholic Social Teaching called SPARK! Social Justice.
Since 1891 the church has spoken a great deal about the human dignity in the workplace and the call for a just and fair wage. Pope Pius XI in “Quadragesimo Anno”, which is the document celebrating the 40th anniversary of Pope Leo XIII encyclical Rerum Novarum, refers to a just wage by saying that “every effort must therefore be made that workers of families receive a wage large enough to meet ordinary family needs adequately.
As part of the continuing project, in the video below, YCW National President Marc Besford talks to us about the dignity of work and the right to fair pay and how young people should be treated in the place of work.
That dignity needs to be restored as unemployment has once more become a burning issue, and unemployment is reaching record levels even in nations that for decades have enjoyed a certain degree of prosperity, there is a renewed need to appreciate the importance of dignified work, of which Saint Joseph is an exemplary patron.
Pope Francis recently said to young people: “Don’t wait until tomorrow to contribute your energy, your audacity and your creativity to changing our world. You are the NOW of God, and he wants you to bear fruit!”. The YCW is keen to be part of this mission and we are calling on society to pay attention to what young people are saying and support us to build a future where: technology is there to assist and improve the quality of life for human beings never the other way round; young people’s God-given dignity can be respected in every aspect, especially in the workplace, where they fulfil their vocation; with sustainability, freedom, peace and love present in every aspect of our lives.
