Editing Labour law (section)

==Individual labour law==

===Employment terms===
{{Main|Employment contract|At-will employment|Intellectual capital}}
The basic feature of labour law in almost every country is that the rights and obligations of the worker and the employer are mediated through a [[contract of employment]] between the two. This has been the case since the collapse of [[feudalism]]. Many contract terms and conditions are covered by [[legislation]] or [[common law]]. In the US for example, the majority of [[State law (United States)|state laws]] allow for [[At-will employment|employment to be "at-will"]], meaning the employer can terminate an employee from a position for any reason so long as the reason is not explicitly prohibited,{{efn|For example, an employee's refusal to violate law or an employee's assertion of rights.}} and, conversely, an employee may quit at any time, for any reason (or for no reason), and is not required to give notice.

A major issue for any business is to understand the relationship between the worker and the master. There are two types of workers, independent contractors and employees.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/abc_test|title=ABC Test|website=LII / Legal Information Institute|language=en|access-date=2020-04-12|archive-date=2021-05-31|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210531120809/https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/abc_test|url-status=live}}</ref> They are differentiated based on the level of control the master has on them. Workers provided tools and resources, closely supervised, paid regularly, etc., are considered employees of the company. Employees must act in the best interest of the employer.

One example of employment terms in many countries<ref>e.g. In the European Union, Directive 91/533</ref> is the duty to provide written particulars of employment with the ''[[essentialia negotii]]'' ([[Latin]] for "essential terms") to an employee. This aims to allow the employee to know concretely what to expect and what is expected. It covers items including [[Compensation and benefits|compensation]], [[Annual leave|holiday]] and [[sick leave|illness rights]], notice in the [[Termination of employment|event of dismissal]] and [[job description]].

The contract is subject to various legal provisions. An employer may not legally offer a contract that pays the worker less than a minimum wage. An employee may not agree to a contract that allows an employer to [[Wrongful dismissal|dismiss them for illegal reasons]].{{efn|In the US, under the [[National Labor Relations Act]], a worker has no right to organize where he is considered a manager, see ''NLRB v. Kentucky River Community Care'', [http://www.lawmemo.com/nlrb/kyrivercases.htm 532 U.S. 706] (2001)}}

Intellectual property is the vital asset<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.wipo.int/sme/en/documents/value_ip_intangible_assets_fulltext.html|title=The Value of Intellectual Property, Intangible Assets and Goodwill|website=www.wipo.int|language=en|access-date=2020-04-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200404145456/https://www.wipo.int/sme/en/documents/value_ip_intangible_assets_fulltext.html|archive-date=2020-04-04|url-status=dead}}</ref> of the business, employees add value to the company<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://partners.wsj.com/aon/balancing-risk-with-opportunity/right-ip-strategy-can-maximize-enterprise-value/|title=Paid Program: IP Risk in IPOs and M&As|date=2019-10-09|website=Aon|language=en-US|access-date=2020-04-12|archive-date=2021-04-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418085725/https://partners.wsj.com/aon/balancing-risk-with-opportunity/right-ip-strategy-can-maximize-enterprise-value/|url-status=live}}</ref> by creating Intellectual Property. As per Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), Intellectual Property is personal property.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/trips_e/intel1_e.htm|title=WTO {{!}} intellectual property (TRIPS) – what are intellectual property rights?|website=www.wto.org|access-date=2020-04-12|archive-date=2019-07-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190706160029/https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/trips_e/intel1_e.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Intellectual property is used as competitive advantage<ref>{{Cite news|last=Conley|first=David Orozco and James|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB121018802603674487|title=Shape of Things to Come|date=2008-05-12|work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]|access-date=2020-04-12|language=en-US|issn=0099-9660|archive-date=2020-12-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201201121551/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB121018802603674487|url-status=live}}</ref> by big companies to protect themselves from rivalry. Given the conditions,<ref>{{Cite news|last=Johnson|first=Antone|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304070304577395953754702524|title=5 'IP' Mistakes Start-ups Should Avoid|date=2012-05-10|work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]|access-date=2020-04-12|language=en-US|issn=0099-9660|archive-date=2021-04-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418090139/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304070304577395953754702524|url-status=live}}</ref> if the worker is in the agent-principal relationship, he is the employee of the company, and if the employee's invention is in the scope of employment i.e. if the employee creates a new product or process to increase the productivity and create organizations' wealth by utilizing the resources of the company, then the Intellectual property solely belongs to the company. New business products or processes are protected under Patents.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.uspto.gov/patents-getting-started/general-information-concerning-patents|title=General information concerning patents|website=www.uspto.gov|language=en-US|access-date=2020-04-12|archive-date=2021-01-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116104326/https://www.uspto.gov/patents-getting-started/general-information-concerning-patents|url-status=live}}</ref>

There are differing opinions on what constitutes a patentable invention.  One area of disagreement is with respect to software inventions, but there have been court cases that have established some precedents.  For example, in the case ''[[Diamond v. Diehr]]'' the [[US Supreme Court]] decided that Diehr is patent- eligible because they improved the existing technological process, not because they were implemented on a computer.

===Minimum wage===
{{Main|Minimum wage}}
Many jurisdictions define the minimum amount that a worker can be paid per hour. Algeria, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Greece, Hungary, India, Ireland, Japan, South Korea, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Paraguay, Portugal, Poland, Romania, Spain, Taiwan, the UK, the US, Vietnam, Germany (in 2015<ref>{{cite web|title=Minimum Wage Act in Germany with effect from 01-01-2015|url=http://www.mayer-kuegler.de/#!minimum-wages-law-germany/mov20|website=Dr. Mayer & Kügler Rechtsanwälte PartG mbB – Arbeitsrecht|publisher=Lawyer Michael Kügler|access-date=27 January 2016|archive-date=1 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501204308/https://www.mayer-kuegler.de/#!minimum-wages-law-germany/mov20|url-status=live}}</ref>) and others have laws of this kind.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Minimum Wage By Country 2021|url=https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/minimum-wage-by-country|access-date=2021-07-28|website=worldpopulationreview.com|archive-date=2021-07-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210728032108/https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/minimum-wage-by-country|url-status=live}}</ref> The minimum wage is set usually higher than the lowest wage as determined by the forces of [[supply and demand]] in a [[free market]] and therefore acts as a [[price floor]]. Each country sets its own [[minimum wage law]]s and regulations, and while a majority of industrialized countries has a minimum wage, many developing countries do not.

Minimum wages are regulated and stipulated in some countries that lack explicit laws. The US has explicit minimum wage laws,<ref>{{cite web |title=Minimum Wage |url=https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages/minimumwage |website=DOL |publisher=U.S. Department of Labor |access-date=2 May 2025 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=State Minimum Wage Laws |url=https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/minimum-wage/state |website=DOL |publisher=U.S. Department of Labor |language=en |date=1 January 2025}}</ref> whereas other countries such as Sweden might lack explicit laws. In Sweden minimum wages are negotiated between the [[Labour economics|labour market]] parties (unions and employer organizations) through [[collective agreements]] that also cover non-union workers at workplaces with collective agreements.<ref name="portal.research.lu.se">Anders Kjellberg (2017) [https://web.archive.org/web/20170418083350/http://portal.research.lu.se/ws/files/23904978/Kjellberg_FSNumhauserHenning_Self_Regulation_State_Regulation.pdf "Self-regulation versus State Regulation in Swedish Industrial Relations"] In Mia Rönnmar and Jenny Julén Votinius (eds.) ''Festskrift till Ann Numhauser-Henning''. Lund: Juristförlaget I Lund 2017, pp. 357–383</ref><ref>Anders Kjellberg [http://portal.research.lu.se/portal/files/31404566/Kollektivavtalst_ckning_samt_organisationsgrad_2017_LUP.pdf ''Kollektivavtalens täckningsgrad same organisations graden hos arbetsgivarförbund och fackförbund''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171110224911/http://portal.research.lu.se/portal/files/31404566/Kollektivavtalst_ckning_samt_organisationsgrad_2017_LUP.pdf |date=2017-11-10 }}, Department of Sociology, Lund University. Studies in Social Policy, Industrial Relations, Working Life and Mobility. Research Reports 2017:1, Appendix 3 (in English) Tables F-G</ref>

At workplaces without collective agreements there exist no minimum wages. Non-organized employers can sign substitute agreements directly with trade unions but far from all do. The Swedish case illustrates that in countries without statutory regulation part of the labour market may not have regulated minimum wages, as self-regulation only applies to workplaces and employees covered by collective agreements (in Sweden about 90 per cent of employees).<ref name="portal.research.lu.se"/><ref>Anders Kjellberg [http://portal.research.lu.se/portal/files/31404566/Kollektivavtalst_ckning_samt_organisationsgrad_2017_LUP.pdf ''Kollektivavtalens täckningsgrad same organisations graden hos arbetsgivarförbund och fackförbund''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171110224911/http://portal.research.lu.se/portal/files/31404566/Kollektivavtalst_ckning_samt_organisationsgrad_2017_LUP.pdf |date=2017-11-10 }}, Department of Sociology, Lund University. Studies in Social Policy, Industrial Relations, Working Life and Mobility. Research Reports 2017:1, Appendix 3 (in English) Tables F-G</ref>

National minimum wage laws were first introduced in the [[Fair Labor Standards Act|United States in 1938]],<ref name="dol">{{cite news| url=http://www.dol.gov/whd/minwage/chart.htm| publisher=Department of Labor| title=History of Federal Minimum Wage Rates Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, 1938&nbsp;– 1996| date=January 31, 2015| access-date=January 31, 2015| archive-date=November 21, 2019| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191121102637/http://www.dol.gov/whd/minwage/chart.htm| url-status=live}}</ref> Brazil in 1940<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www6.senado.gov.br/legislacao/ListaPublicacoes.action?id=37717 |title=DECRETO-LEI |volume=2 |issue=162 |trans-title=Law Decree |publisher=Senado Federal [Brazilian Senate] |date=1 May 1940 |language=pt |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116004130/http://www6.senado.gov.br/legislacao/ListaPublicacoes.action?id=37717 |archive-date=16 January 2013 }}</ref> India in 1948,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://maitri.mahaonline.gov.in/pdf/minimum-wages-act-1948.pdf |title=The Minimum Wages Act, 1948 |access-date=2017-01-27 |archive-date=2021-04-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418090727/https://maitri.mahaonline.gov.in/pdf/minimum-wages-act-1948.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> France in 1950<ref name="France">{{cite news|url=http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/emire/FRANCE/MINIMUMWAGEGUARANTEED-FR.htm |publisher=European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions |title=Minimum wage (guaranteed) |date=March 31, 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029215427/https://www.eurofound.europa.eu/emire/FRANCE/MINIMUMWAGEGUARANTEED-FR.htm |archive-date=2013-10-29 }}</ref> and in the [[National Minimum Wage Act 1998|UK in 1998]].<ref name="uk">{{cite news|url=http://www.dti.gov.uk/er/nmw/nmwhist.htm |publisher=Department of Trade and Industry |title=National Minimum Wage |date=March 31, 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090129174946/http://www.dti.gov.uk/er/nmw/nmwhist.htm |archive-date=2009-01-29 }}</ref> In the [[European Union]], 18 out of 28 member states have national minimum wages as of 2011.<ref name="Eurostat 2005">{{cite web|publisher=[[Eurostat]]|year=2005|title=Minimum Wages 2005: Major Differences between EU Member States|url=http://www.eds-destatis.de/en/downloads/sif/nk_05_07.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718233256/http://www.eds-destatis.de/en/downloads/sif/nk_05_07.pdf|archive-date=18 July 2011}}</ref>

===Living wage===
{{Main|Living wage}}

The living wage is higher than the minimum wage and is designed so that a full-time worker should be able to support themselves and a small family at that wage.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Clain, S.|year=2008|title=How Living Wage Legislation Affects U.S. Poverty Rates|journal=Journal of Labor Research|volume=29|issue=3|pages=205–218|doi=10.1007/s12122-007-9028-8|s2cid=153424688}}</ref>

===Hours===
{{See also|Eight-hour day}}
The maximum number of hours worked per day or other time intervals are set by law in many countries. Such laws also control whether workers who work longer hours must be paid additional compensation.

Before the Industrial Revolution, the workday varied between 11 and 14 hours. With the growth of [[industrialism]] and the introduction of machinery, longer hours became far more common, reaching as high as 16 hours per day. The [[eight-hour day|eight-hour movement]] led to the first law on the length of a working day, passed in 1833 in England. It limited miners to 12 hours and children to 8 hours. The 10-hour day was established in 1848, and shorter hours with the same pay were gradually accepted thereafter. The 1802 [[Factory Act]] was the first labour law in the UK.

Germany was the next European country to pass labour laws. Chancellor [[Otto von Bismarck]]'s main goal was to undermine the [[Social Democratic Party of Germany]]. In 1878, Bismarck instituted a variety of anti-socialist measures, but despite this, socialists continued gaining seats in the [[Reichstag (German Empire)|Reichstag]]. To appease the working class, he enacted a variety of [[paternalistic]] social reforms, which became the first type of [[social security]].

In 1883, the Health Insurance Act was passed, which entitled workers to health insurance. The worker paid two-thirds and the employer one-third of the premiums. Accident insurance was provided in 1884, while old-age pensions and disability insurance followed in 1889. Other laws restricted the employment of women and children. These efforts, however, were not entirely successful; the working class largely remained unreconciled with Bismarck's conservative government.

In France, the first labour law was voted in 1841. It limited under-age miners' hours. In the [[French Third Republic|Third Republic]] labour law was first effectively enforced, in particular after the [[Waldeck-Rousseau 1884 law]] legalising [[trade unions]]. With the [[Matignon Accords (1936)|Matignon Accords]], the [[Popular Front (France)|Popular Front]] (1936–38) enacted the laws mandating 12 days each year of [[annual leave|paid vacations]] for workers and the law limiting the standard workweek to 40 hours.

===Health and safety===

{{Main|Occupational safety and health}}
Other labour laws involve safety concerning workers. The earliest English [[Factory Acts#Health and Morals of Apprentices Act 1802|factory law]] was passed in 1802 and dealt with the safety and health of [[child labour]]ers in [[textile]] mills.

===Discrimination===
{{Main|Anti-discrimination law}}
Such laws prohibit [[discrimination]] against employees, in particular [[racial discrimination]] or [[sexism|gender discrimination]].

===Dismissal===
{{Main|Unfair dismissal|Wrongful dismissal|At-will employment}}
[[Termination of Employment Convention, 1982|Convention no. 158]] of the [[International Labour Organization]] states that an employee "can't be fired without any legitimate motive" and "before offering him the possibility to defend himself". Thus, on April 28, 2006, after the unofficial repeal of the French [[First Employment Contract]], the [[Longjumeau]] ([[Essonne]]) ''conseil des prud'hommes'' (labour law court) judged the [[New Employment Contract]] contrary to [[international law]] and therefore "illegitimate" and "without any juridical value". The court considered that the two-years period of "fire at will" (without any legal motive) was "unreasonable", and contrary to convention.<ref name="Reuters">{{Cite news|title=Un contrat en CNE jugé contraire au droit international |date=April 28, 2006 |access-date=2006-05-05 |publisher=Reuters |url=http://today.reuters.fr/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2006-04-28T165412Z_01_TOU860781_RTRIDST_0_OFRTP-FRANCE-EMPLOI-CNE-TRIBUNAL-20060428.XML |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060524110508/http://today.reuters.fr/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2006-04-28T165412Z_01_TOU860781_RTRIDST_0_OFRTP-FRANCE-EMPLOI-CNE-TRIBUNAL-20060428.XML |url-status=dead |archive-date=May 24, 2006 |language=fr }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news | title=Bernard Thibault au plus haut |date=April 28, 2006 | access-date=2006-05-05 | work=[[L'Express (France)|L'Express]] | url=http://www.lexpress.fr/info/quotidien/actu.asp?id=3591 | archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20091001054905/http://www.lexpress.fr/info/quotidien/actu.asp?id=3591 | archive-date=2009-10-01 |language=fr}}</ref>

===Child labour===
{{Main|Child labour}}
[[File: Abolish child slavery.jpg|thumb|right|Two girls wearing banners in Yiddish and English with the slogan "Abolish child slavery!!" at the 1909 [[International Workers' Day]] parade in New York City]]
Child labour was not seen as a problem throughout most of history, only disputed with the beginning of universal [[education|schooling]] and the concepts of [[labour rights|labourers']] and [[children's rights]]. Use of [[child labour]] was commonplace, often in factories. In England and Scotland in 1788, about two-thirds of persons working in water-powered [[textile]] factories were children.<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://www.galbithink.org/child.htm |title=Child Labor and the Division of Labor in the Early English Cotton Mills |publisher=Galbi Think! |date=13 June 1994 |author=Galbi, Douglas A. |journal=Journal of Population Economics |volume=10 |issue=4 |pages=357–75 |pmid=12293082 |doi=10.1007/s001480050048 |s2cid=5858814 |access-date=8 January 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060109031609/http://www.galbithink.org/child.htm |archive-date=9 January 2006 |url-status=dead |url-access=subscription }}</ref> Child labour can be factory work, mining or quarrying, agriculture, helping in the parents' business, operating a [[small business]] (such as selling food), or doing odd jobs.<ref name="Unicef"/>

Children work as guides for [[tourism|tourists]], sometimes combined with bringing in business for shops and [[restaurant]]s (where they may also work). Other children do jobs such as assembling boxes or polishing shoes. However, rather than in factories and [[sweatshop]]s, most child labour in the twenty-first century occurs in the informal sector, "selling on the street, at work in [[agriculture]] or [[child domestic work|hidden away in houses]]&nbsp;— far from the reach of official inspectors and from media scrutiny."<ref name="Unicef">{{cite web | title=The State of the World's Children 1997 | work=UNICEF | url=http://www.unicef.org/sowc97/report/ | access-date=2007-04-15 | archive-date=2011-08-09 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110809110938/http://www.unicef.org/sowc97/report/ | url-status=dead }}</ref>