Related Ideas

Ann refers to the problem of "coercive wage bargains." Any theory of rights must eventually deal with the nature of the right of individuals to make contracts. What limits are there or ought there to be on that right? To what extent is the state  justified in setting limits on the individual right of contract?

Most people who consider the question would agree that a binding contract requires the absence of force and fraud. Most would also agree that it requires the presence of rationality. If one party making a contract is under the influence of drugs, the contract is automatically invalid. Or, to take another case, many would argue that no contract making oneself a slave is binding because no rational person would make such a contract.

What are we to say about contracts made by persons facing the threat of starvation? If a woman in a very poor country must choose between starvation, prostitution, and working for subsistence wages under very unsafe conditions, is the contract valid? Is the state justified in prohibiting such contracts by imposing minimum wage and safety requirements?

These issues are all part of the problem of so-called coercive wage bargains.

Reference: