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ESSENTIAL WORK

Term (meaning, literally, "protected work") which is mainly used in the context of industrial action to refer to work that has to be done in order to maintain, for example, the vital functions and essential services of society. For example, a union that has called a strike allows certain enterprises or employees to carry on essential work even though work in the area of employment concerned otherwise falls within the scope of the strike.

The same term is also used in the sense of "sheltered employment", i.e. paid work arranged by the social welfare authorities for handicapped persons and those with a work disability.