Pope Leo XIII's rerum novarum

Abstract

The late 19th and early 20th centuries were marked by significant advances in production, which were in large part a consequence of numerous discoveries which were being made with increasing rapidity. The condition of workers had not followed those advances, who were instead their victims. Ever increasing societal wealth was accumulating in the hands of a small number of people while the vast majority of workers existed on the very edge of physical survival. Ever more frequent and emphatic dissatisfaction impelled states and prominent social functionaries to take a stance on the condition of workers and take measures to improve it. Aware of the extremely disadvantageous condition of the workers, but also of the danger posed by socialism and communism, Pope Leo XIII acted accordingly, particularly through his encyclical Rerum novarum. This work takes into consideration the condition of workers at the time of the encyclical's issuing, analyses its content, and in one section examines the significance of the encyclical and its influence on the further development of workers' rights.