Social Rights

The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe gave a mandate to the Steering Committee for Human Rights (CDDH) to identify good practices and to make proposals with a view to improving the implementation of social rights in Europe. In parallel, the European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) considered ways in which to render the reporting procedure under the European Social Charter more effective.

These efforts converged as regards reporting in the sense of adjusting the procedure to render it lighter and more targeted, focussing on topics of strategic importance.

As a result, already in 2019, the ECSR decided to ask States Parties to the European Social Charter - whether the 1961 or the Revised Charter - to respond in their reports to certain targeted questions with a strategic dimension and to address only part of the provisions within the group “employment, training and equal opportunities”, without prejudice to responding to issues still pending from previous reporting cycles.

Because the questions were addressed to states later than usual, the ECSR invited countries to submit their reports by 31 December 2019 (instead of end of October as on previous occasions). Similarly, the Committee extended the period for submission of comments on national reports by trade unions, employers’ organisations and non-governmental organisations, until 30 June 2020 (instead of the usual 30 April deadline).

When transmitting the questions in this new format, the Committee recalled member states’ commitment to ensuring the effective exercise of the right to work and to striving for full employment (Article 1§1 of the Charter). In order to effectively pursue this objective, and not to leave part of the work force behind, robust strategies, in particular education and training, will be required to respond to present day developments (globalisation, technological developments, automation). Policies have to be adequately resourced and implemented proactively and vigorously.

The ECSR therefore asked about re- or upskilling efforts to adjust training to the evolving demands for workers to be competitive in emerging labour markets (including digital and other new technologies and working environments). The Committee also decided to pay attention to measures designed to respond to long-term, endemic or chronic unemployment or underemployment, and against forced labour and modern slavery. It further asked about the protection against exploitation of workers in the “gig” or the “platform economy”.

The whole range of issues raised (including also disabilities, discrimination, equal pay, regulation of termination of employment) can be found in the full text of the Committee’s questions to States.

In the future, the reporting procedure may also evolve as regards the follow-up given to it by the Governmental Committee and the Committee of Ministers (see Part VI of the 1961 Charter, as amended).