Human Labour: A Commodity to Be Bought and Sold
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25159/2520-9515/18895Keywords:
human labour, labour force, commodity, slavery, International Labour Organisation (ILO)Abstract
The question of whether human labour is a commodity to be bought and sold has been addressed in some spheres of academia but is yet to be addressed properly within the perspective of labour law. In this article I will answer this question through an examination of the theoretical arguments on the one hand and practical legal arguments on the other. The more traditional approach to the question, which takes the form of the practical legal perspective, concludes that labour is not a commodity, simply because the law says so. That is to say, there are statutes and judicial precedents in place that attempt to prevent the commodification of human labour. However, through theoretical approach, the article reveals that labour is akin to the then enslavement of people as labour cannot be separated from one’s self. As a solution to the problem, I propose that workers must have partial ownership of the industries and companies they labour for in order to redress not only the past but the present as well.
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Accepted 2026-04-15
Published 2026-06-09
