Dramatised Bible Reading: Matthew 20. 1-16

The drama section is broken down into readings of a few verses of the Gospel [above] and then a dramatic exploration of how we might respond today. In order to highlight this, the three central figures are: a supermarket executive, a consumer and a fruit picker in the South of England. You need four people to read: one narrator of the Gospel and one person for each of the characters mentioned above.

Drama:

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who went out early in the morning to hire labourers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the labourers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard.” (Matt. 20, vv1-2)

Supermarket Executive: “People who work for me get a fair wage. I mean, they’re not exactly management material are they? Why should they get top wages? We tend to give our contracts for fruit picking and things like that to well-priced groups. We give the money to a supervisor and they, I assume, would dole it out to the fruit pickers. But what goes on elsewhere is absolutely none of my concern. I couldn’t care less as long as the fruit ends up on the shelves. That is my job: customer service. As long as Joe Public is smiling he’s spending money.”

Fruit Picker: “I am grateful for the work in the fields, but to be honest the pay is awful. I work for 12 sometimes 14 hours a day and get a pittance. It does pay for a roof over the heads of the family and food, but little else. What’s more important to me is that when I get home, because of the workday, I am so tired. I have no time with the kids or my wife. For what? A pittance.”

“And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the market place; and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went.” (Matt. 20, vv 3-4)

Supermarket Executive: “The way I see it is that the people like fruit pickers and the like, need me more than I need them. You hear all these sob stories about no money and poverty, but if it weren’t for my company they would have nothing. I help them out by giving them jobs. They ought to be grateful! Half the time they’re probably standing around idle anyway.”

Fruit Picker: “I know that it must seem that all I do is moan but I work so hard and the only thing that seems to increase as a result is the bosses salary. I want to work and am too proud to take unemployment benefit. What can I do? I need the job but it pays so badly. I wish that the bosses could understand. All I want is a fair wage. Is that really too much to ask?”

Consumer: “I don’t think that there is too much cause for alarm. The supermarkets employ people who can’t get jobs elsewhere. They’re doing them a favour really. They ought to be grateful that they’re not on the dole anymore and are doing something useful. As long as my shopping bill doesn’t go up then I’m quite happy.”

“Going out again about the sixth and the ninth hour, he did the same. And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing; and he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’” (Matt. 20, vv 5-7)

Fruit Picker: “I doubt whether the people who hire fruit pickers or the supermarket bosses actually understand how hard it is to get a job. I mean, it isn’t as if I am lazy and just sit in front of the TV all day. I went out and looked for a job. This was the only one going. Desperate times call for desperate measures.”

Supermarket Executive: “I’ve heard all the excuses before about how hard it is to find a job and how unfair the wage is. Well, no one is forcing anyone to work. If fruit pickers, shelf stackers or anyone else think they can do better then they can try. I’m giving these people a job, a wage and a secure working area. What else! A company car and a brass plaque on the staff room door?”

Consumer: “I work hard to have a company car, nice house and foreign holidays. If I can do it then so can the people on the dole or in fruit fields. I reckon most of these people are lazy and just prefer to watch ‘Kilroy’ in the mornings than do a decent day’s work. If you threatened to cut their benefits then they would soon find a job.”

“And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the labourers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.’ And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius.” (Matt. 20, vv 8-10)

Fruit Picker: “We are all paid the same but the truth is that we all think that it is too little. When we ask the boss for more he yells at us and says that we are greedy and that if he asked the supermarket for more then we would all lose our jobs. I can see his argument, but I’m sure that the supermarkets give him more and he just doesn’t pay us properly. I don’t know. It’s all so confusing.”

Supermarket Executive: “Well, we pay what we have to pay. I doubt anyone can say that they have been the subject of favouritism. All our ground floor staff get the minimum wage and I have no idea what we give to the fruit pickers but I am sure that it’s fair. It’s different for those of us in executive posts though. I mean, we do all the work and deserve the salaries. I don’t think £500,000 is excessive, do you?”

Consumer: “I would think that everyone gets paid exactly the same. Does it really matter?”

“And on receiving they grumbled at the householder, saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius?’” (Matt. 20, vv 11-14)

Supermarket Executive: “Everyone wants more money and that is all they say. What it boils down to is that people are greedy. They have a fair wage, well; I think that it’s fair. They can live off that but they want more. I won’t waste money on labourers. I have a more pressing consideration: the stockholders.”

Consumer: “It seems that no matter how much you pay people they ask for more. I mean look at this Minimum Wage thing. The Government has given a guarantee of £4.20 an hour and now people are demanding more. If they want a better salary then get a better job. I did and so can they!”

Fruit Picker: “Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy work. I work for the agreed price but think that it is simply not fair that I put in all the hours of back-breaking labour for a tiny wage when a supermarket chief can take home a huge salary. I’m not saying that I want his salary (although I wouldn’t say no!) just a fairer wage for my work.”

“’Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’” (Matt. 20, v15)

Consumer: “I think that I am in touch with the ethics of shopping. You know, fair wages, fair trade and all that stuff, but why should I pay more for food just because it has been harvested in an ethically OK way? I need to think about my finances too. If I can buy something cheaply in a supermarket, I’m hardly likely to go somewhere else where it is going to cost more. That is crazy and not very good economics either. I’m happy where I am and that’s what matters.”

Supermarket Executive: “As I’ve said before, it’s the firm’s money. Why should I spend it on raising salaries when I could use it to please the shareholders? My priorities have always been to use the available money to please the customer with low prices and also to please the shareholders. I can achieve both of these by paying less for labour. This reduces the cost and allows me to sell it on at a profit. It’s only business after all, nothing personal.”

Fruit Picker: “I appreciate that people don’t want to spend more than they have to, but they must also think about the consequences of their spending. It does have an effect. If the consumer didn’t want the cheapest possible goods then the supermarkets wouldn’t need to push prices down so much. It’s a vicious circle, but one with only one victim: me. I get paid so little for the consumer to eat so well. Is that fair? Is it?”

“So the last will be first, and the first last” (Matt. 20, v 16)

Discussion:

1. After acting this out, read through the Gospel again and ask yourself what Jesus was saying about: work, wages and fair pay. Do we act on these issues in our own society? 2. The people who have played the characters may have a better understanding of how it feels to be these people. Did you feel powerful, humiliated, not bothered? 3. Is this inequality in pay and work fair? How can we redress the balance? 4. What are the similarities and differences between the characters? How and why do you think these inequalities occur? Can they be avoided? 5. Should there be a maximum wage as well as a minimum wage?