Pope Francis: property is a secondary right

In a videoconference message to the ILO, Pope Francis claimed the right of all workers to organize in unions at a time when economic activity is about to increase as the threat of the pandemic diminishes and pointed out that private property is a secondary right.

The pontiff highlighted the needs of migrants and the most vulnerable workers in general, in a video message to the conference of the International Labor Organization (ILO), a UN agency based in Geneva. During his speech, he said that "sometimes, when we talk about private property, we forget that it is a secondary right, that it depends on this primary right, that it is the universal destination of goods."

Pope Francis said that the reconstruction of economies after the Covid-19 setbacks should point to a future with "decent and dignified working conditions", which come from collective bargaining. He said that the "right to organize" is one of the fundamental protections of workers.

He deplored that many vulnerable migrants and workers are often excluded from national health plans. During the pandemic, this exclusion “complicates early detection, testing, diagnosis, contact tracing and seeking medical care for COVID-19 for refugees and migrants and therefore increases risk. Outbreaks occur among these populations," said the Pope.

Source: La Nación