A matter of trust
Employment is a relationship. The employee and the employer are in a trusted relationship. The employer trusts the employee to do their jobs as required, and we trust the employer to compensate us and furnish a safe and legal work environment. To treat us fairly and humanely. There are always many elements to this relationship, many agreements, some clearly articulated and some assumed. But at its most fundamental level, employment is a relationship.
Depending on whether we work in a small business or a large one, and anything in between, we could have many employer/employee relationships. As an employee, we have a cultural relationship with the corporation. We have relationships with our direct managers, their managers, our co-workers, customers, stakeholders. It’s infinite really. Even families not directly employed are often involved.
Relationships cannot be healthy without trust. Many other factors play a part, but I firmly believe that any relationship that exists without trust is doomed to fail. It becomes toxic, dysfunctional, unhealthy. All good relationships are built on trust.
