The procedure on non-accepted provisions aims to encourage States Parties to progressively accept all the Charter’s provisions, as it is in the spirit of the Charter.

 As per Article 22 of the 1961 Charter, the Committee of Ministers can ask States to send reports at appropriate intervals relating to provisions of the Charter which they did not accept at the time of their ratification or approval or in a subsequent notification. The implementation of this provision became effective after a 2002 decision of the Committee of Ministers, following which States having ratified the Revised European Social Charter must report on the non-accepted provisions every five years after the date of ratification.

 The procedure for the implementation of Article 22 on non-accepted provisions became effective by a decision of the Committee of Ministers adopted on 11 December 2002 at the 821st meeting of the Ministers' deputies, whereby States having ratified the Revised European Social Charter are to report on non-accepted provisions every five years after the date of ratification, and the European Committee of Social Rights is invited to examine the information provided by the States concerned.

Considering the objective of strengthening the impact of the European Social Charter, the Committee of Ministers adopted  a new decision on 11 December 2019 at the 1363rd meeting of the Ministers’ deputies inviting “the ECSR to make full use of the opportunities for dialogue offered by Article 22 and to include in this exercise a dialogue with the member States that are not yet Party to the revised Charter, with a view to encouraging them to ratify it”.

In September 2022, the European Committee of Social Rights adopted a decision to henceforth implement the adjusted procedure on non-accepted provisions in a reinforced manner, for all States Parties to either Charter (the 1961 version or the 1996 version). In October 2023, the European Committee of Social Rights amended the deadline for the submission of written information on the non-accepted provisions by the States Parties, from 30 June to 31 March.

 Detailed information on the provisions not accepted by States Parties and reports adopted by the European Committee of Social Rights on these provisions may be consulted in the country by country tables presented below.

Reports on non-accepted provisions per country
Shortcuts
events

Back Spain signs the Additional Protocol to the European Social Charter on collective complaints

Spain signs the Additional Protocol to the European Social Charter on collective complaints

Manuel Montobbio, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Permanent Representative of Spain to the Council of Europe, signed today, in the presence of Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe, the Additional Protocol of 1995 providing for a system of collective complaints. This is an important step which requires the subsequent ratification of the Protocol or a declaration at the time of ratifying the revised Charter, a ratification process that is well under way in Spain.

“The signature of the collective complaints Protocol demonstrates Spain’s commitment to social rights and support for the European Social Charter system”, emphasised Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni. The Deputy Secretary General also applauded the timing, when the Charter celebrates its 60th anniversary (1961 – 2021) against a backdrop of discussions on improving the implementation of social rights in Europe and strengthening the Charter system.

The aim pursued with the introduction of the procedure in 1995 was to increase the effectiveness and the impact of the implementation of the Charter at national level. In addition, the collective complaints procedure has strengthened the role of social partners and non-governmental organisations by enabling them to apply under this opt-in procedure to the European Committee of Social Rights to examine compliance by States with the Charter provisions they have accepted.

Strasbourg, France O4/02/2021
  • Diminuer la taille du texte
  • Augmenter la taille du texte
  • Imprimer la page
Resources and links
Contacts

Department of Social Rights

Directorate General of Human Rights and Rule of Law
Council of Europe
1, quai Jacoutot
F – 67075 Strasbourg Cedex

Tél. +33 (0)3 90 21 49 61

www.coe.int/socialcharter

@CoESocialRights

 

Contact us