Social Rights

The European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) invites trade unions, employers’ organisations, non-governmental organisations, national human rights institutions and national equality bodies to submit comments on national reports under the reporting procedure to the ECSR relating to the provisions belonging to thematic group 4 “Children, families and migrants” by 30 June 2023.

Group 4 covers the following articles:

• the right of children and young persons to protection (Article 7);
• the right of employed women to protection of maternity (Article 8);
• the right of the family to social, legal and economic protection (Article 16);
• the right of children and young persons to social, legal and economic protection (Article 17);
• the right of migrant workers and their families to protection and assistance (Article 19);
• the right of workers with family responsibilities to equal opportunity and treatment (Article 27)
• the right to housing (Article 31).

When considering whether to submit comments on national reports, organisations must verify which version of the European Social Charter has been ‘ratified’ by the State Party in question and which provision(s) of the Charter the State Party has accepted (see below).

The European Committee of Social Rights, wishing to focus its monitoring to a selected number of issues and to alleviate the reporting burden on States, invited States Parties to limit their national reports to replies to specific and targeted questions for each of the above-mentioned articles of the Charter, without prejudice to responding to issues still pending from previous reporting cycles. The objective is to render the reporting procedure under the European Social Charter more effective and targeted.

State reports can be found on the European Social Charter web site under country profiles.

Comments on national reports can be submitted to the Secretariat of the European Social Charter by email ([email protected]) or by mail at the following address:

Department of Social Rights
Directorate General Human Rights and Rule of Law 
Council of Europe 
1 quai Jacoutot, F-67075 
Strasbourg Cedex, France

• Reporting Procedure
• Questions to States Parties to the Revised European Social Charter
• Questions to States Parties to the 1961 Charter
• Signatures and ratifications
• Acceptance of provisions
• Brochure "How can (I)NGOs engage with the ECSR under the monitoring procedures of the European Social Charter"
• Guide "How can National Human Rights Institutions and National Equality Bodies engage with the European Committee of Social Rights"