GENERAL PROVISIONS ARTS.

1-2

“Labor,” in ordinary signification, is understood as physical toil although
it does not necessarily exclude the application of skill, thus there is skilled and
unskilled labor. “Skill,” by dictionary definition, is the familiar knowledge of any
art or science, united with readiness and dexterity in execution or performance
or in the application of the art or science to practical purposes.
“Work” is broader than “labor” as “work” covers all forms of physical or
mental exertion, or both combined, for the attainment of some object other
than recreation or amusement per se.
For this reason “worker” is broader than “employee,” as “workers” may
refer to self-employed people and those working in the service and under the
control of another, regardless of rank, title, or nature of work. A messenger, as
well as a manager, is a worker. In fact, under Article 13 of the Labor Code, any
member of the labor force, whether employed or unemployed, is a “worker.”1
“Employee” is a salaried person working for another who controls or
supervises the means, manner or method of doing the work. Employment
relationship is expounded in Book III of this work.
2. LABOR LAW AND SOCIAL LEGISLATION
Distinction exists between “labor law” and “social legislation” but it is not
easy to delineate. No law dictionary, local or foreign, defines “social legislation.”
But a definition is called for. We define social legislation as those laws that
provide particular kinds of protection or benefits to society or segments thereof
in furtherance of social justice. In that sense, labor laws are necessarily social
legislation. Agrarian reform law is a social legislation, so is the law providing for
a social security system. The Labor Code provisions on State Insurance Fund
to cover work-related injuries and occupational diseases are, likewise, pieces of
social legislation.
Insisting to differentiate, some authors contend that “labor laws” directly
affect employment while “social legislation” governs effects of employment.
This insistence hardly makes things clear. For instance, it is hardly defensible
to say that emergency medical treatment rendered at the worksite to a worker
is covered by “labor law” but not by social legislation, while medical treatment
rendered outside the workplace to the same person for the same injury involves
a “social legislation” but not a labor law. Specifically, how can one say that
medical treatment under Article 162 of the Labor Code is labor law but not
social legislation, while sickness benefit under Section 14 of the Social Security
law is social legislation but not labor law?

1
These two volumes mean to be gender-free. “He,” “his,” “worker,” or “man”
refers to a person, not necessarily male, unless the context obviously means otherwise.