We may measure work in terms of its value to the individual. Firstly, as a means of survival - of earning, as we say, one?s ?living?. The Bible puts it succinctly: ?If anyone would not work, neither should he eat??[Thessalonians]

Earning a wage or a salary through working also permits the individual to have a family life and a social life, as well as the satisfaction and fulfilment of a career.

Work thus brings self-respect; people who idle away their time rarely achieve this. We say of such people that ?they have never done an honest day?s work in their lives? and here the willingness to work is equated with a person?s moral worth.

It is of course possible in the so-called developed countries of the world to survive on social security hand-outs [on the ?dole?, as it is familiarly known in England], but this usually means a life of misery and hardship even if one can put up with the boredom and hopelessness of it, as the cost of living in these countries is extremely high and the hand-outs never sufficient.

In the not-too-distant past work was seen as security: a safe job with a pension was the ideal for most people. Nowadays, job security is a thing of the past and in addition more and more employees are losing their pension rights because of great upheavals in the business world.

There are clearly prejudices with regard to work: most people prefer the idea of a ?white-collar job? - where your clothes [and hands] stay clean - to manual work. More ?intellectual? occupations and the ?professions? [medicine, law?] usually bring in more money and certainly give more prestige in society. Education is seen as the passport to such jobs.

Man?s ? and woman?s - right to work is proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In simplified terms the relevant clause reads: ?Everyone has the right to work for a fair wage and in a safe environment.?

Work therefore has value only if it is not slavery or servitude. Unfortunately in the modern world we still see various situations where working conditions are so bad or wages so low that they resemble slavery. One example which shocked the world a few years ago was the exploitation of child-labour in the poorest of countries by multi-nationals manufacturing sports goods. Similarly, illegal immigrants in the industrialized countries are often victims of exploitation because of their irregular circumstances.

The right to work also implies the right to leisure. Sick leave, paid holidays and regulated working hours are now taken for granted, people often forgetting that they are relatively recent developments ? all post-World War II.

Work is considered as an essential part of life and governments all over the world face great headaches over how to provide enough of it to satisfy their populations. The fear of redundancy and unemployment is ever-present on the modern industrial scene.

In certain circumstances work is a valuable form of therapy - it plays an important role in the rehabilitation of prisoners and provides an aim in life for people with disabilities.

For some old-fashioned wisdom, let us give the last word to Thomas Carlyle, historian and essayist, who lived from 1795 to 1881: ? Work is the grand cure of all the maladies and miseries that ever beset mankind?. Still true today? More than ever?