Explain the employment-at-will doctrine. How does this doctrine conflict with the belief that workers are more than just a commodity that can be bought and sold in a labor market?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The employment-at-will doctrine states that employers have the right to dismiss their employees for any cause (i.e., "at will"). This suggests that employees can be treated as "disposable" factors of production and easily discarded when they are no longer deemed useful. However, the fact that workers are human beings with thoughts, emotions, needs, and desires conflicts with the notion that they are like any other commodity. Work is not solely an economic transaction, but rather it is complete human activity whereby moral views on the sanctity of human life and human dignity must be respected. Unlike other commodities, when human life is not treated with respect, these "human assets" can act in ways that push back. Further, the quality of employment and the workplace itself is important for individuals, their families, and society as a whole, thus creating an additional responsibility for employers to treat them with greater dignity and respect.