• What is labor law?
• Origin and antecedents of labor law
• Sources of labor law
• Characteristics of labor law
• Principles of labor law
• Subjects of labor law
• Work contract

We explain what labor law is, its origins, sources and other characteristics. In addition, elements of the employment contract.

This branch of law regulates the relationship between workers and employers.

What is labor law?

Labor law is a branch of law formed by a set of legal norms established in the relationship betweenworkers and employers. It is constituted by the precepts of public and legal order, which are based on the premise of assuring those who work full development asperson and a real integration to thesociety.

Origin and antecedents of labor law

The history of labor law is not as old as that of labor, the latter has existed since man began to work to satisfy hisbasic needs. For many years there were severalcultures who implemented theslavery as a means of domination.

The first vestiges of labor law appeared in ancient Rome, where employers had certain obligations towards their workers (such as guaranteeing them shelter and food) which in turn swore fidelity to his owner. After the fall of this Empire and in the Middle Ages Work began to be thought of as a social activity and to take on a dimension of its importance.

The significant change in the way of approaching the subject of the work occurred from the Industrial Revolution, a starting point for the awareness that wealth would not be obtained only from the land. Industrialization exposed workers to hazardous and unhealthy working conditions.

TheFrench Revolution and the latereconomic liberalism they postulated that the worker should be paid what is necessary so that he could live, but without ceasing to be the market the natural allocator of resources. The alternative that emerged was theMarxism, which demanded an abolition of the capitalist mode and demanded labor rights for workers.

During this period, a working-class consciousness was created, starting the first strikes and the formation of unions. The first labor laws emerged at the end of the 19th century (sickness insurance law, work accident law). In May 1886, American workers went on strike to reduce the working day to eight hours, thus establishing May 1 as International Labor Day.

In 1919 the International Labor Organization whose objective was to protect and promote labor rights. The right to work was recognized as a basic right of all people in the Declaration of the Human rights, document proclaimed by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1948.

Sources of labor law

The sources of law are all those regulations and resolutions that contributed to creating the set of rules that form labor law. Among the most significant are:

• Constitution. Formed by civil rights among which is the right to work.
• International deals. Agreements between countries and organizations to jointly regulate labor regulations.
• Laws. Legal provisions that regulate working conditions and relationships.
• Decrees. Normative content that must be complied with by all citizens.

Characteristics of labor law

Labor law extends only to formal employment.

• Dynamic. It is in constant evolution according to the socioeconomic processes that each country experiences.
• Social. It aims to represent the general interest, but it is also a professional right, because it deals with people who exercise a profession or work.
• Expansive. Was born withcompetencies very low that were updated and continue to do so.
• Autonomous. Be part of positive law, but it has its own regulations.
• Specific. It deals with duties and rights, but is restricted to work relationships. One of the great limitations of labor law is that it only applies to formal employment. It is the duty of each state to apply sanctions against unregistered work and encourage formal work through incentives.

Principles of labor law

The beginning of labor law are the essential guidelines and ideas on which the norm is based and sustained, fundamental to guarantee the legal order and serve as a guide for anyone who wants or needs to interpret it.

• Protective principle. It is the fundamental principle of labor law that implies the defense of the most vulnerable part in an employment relationship (the worker). It is governed by three main rules: rule of the most favorable norm (in the case of concurrence of two or more norms, the one that most favors the worker must be applied), rule of the most beneficial condition (a new norm cannot worsen conditions of a worker), rule in dubio pro operator (before a rule that has two or more interpretations, the one that most benefits the worker must be applied).
• Principle of inalienability of rights. It implies that no worker can renounce basic labor rights such as: rest and paid vacations, free trade union organization, access to decent working conditions, among others.
• Principle of continuity of employment relationship. It implies that the contract that is signed between employer and employee is of long duration, since it assumes that work is the main source of income for the worker.
• Principle of the primacy of reality. It implies that given the discrepancy between the facts that occur in reality and what is established in documents, what is based on the facts prevails.
• Principle of reasonableness. It involves the use of reason and common sense when applying the rules in the workplace.
• Principle of good faith. It implies acting in an upright and honest manner in any employment relationship. This principle is present in all branches of law.

Subjects of labor law

In the field of law, it is considered subject to all natural or legal person to which rights and obligations are imputed.

• Employee. Natural person who lends subordinate work to another.
• Employer. Natural person who hires the services of one or more persons.
• Intermediary. Person involved in hiring one or more people to provide services to an employer.
• Business. Economic entity that produces or distributes goods or services.
• Labor union. Association made up of workers for the defense of their rights.

Work contract

The employment contract is the agreement between a worker and his employer and is detailed in a legal document. In the contract, the worker agrees to perform work in exchange for remuneration.

A contract can be individual, when it is established between a worker and an employer; or collective when the conditions of the contract are negotiated between a group of workers or union and an employer.

Employment contracts usually include certain elements:

• Remuneration. It refers to the payment that the worker receives periodically. There are many countries where theminimum salary, which makes this negotiation not only subject to the laws of the market.
• Workday. It refers to the number of hours that will be worked. In most countries, a maximum working day of eight hours per day was established.
• Holidays. It refers to a number of days a year in which the employee will not go to work, but will not stop receiving their pay.
• Working conditions. It refers to some basic requirements that every work environment must have: environment healthy, available work tools, control of stress factorsrisk.