Status of Priests Within the Framework of Labor Relations in Religious Organizations

Abstract

This article raises the question of the status of clergy within the activities of religious organizations. The author examines cases when clergy enter into labor relations, and when this is impossible and contrary to Divine law and the canons of the Church. In addition, the article identifies the main differences in the status of clergy in local and centralized religious organizations. For example, the possibility of concluding an employment contract with clergy holding administrative positions in dioceses. The issue of the need for religious organizations to pay social contributions to government bodies, despite the lack of labor relations with clergy, is also being explored. In particular, the procedure for deductions and the amount of these payments are considered using the example of specific parishes and dioceses.