The European Social Charter of 1961 is the counterpart of the European Convention on Human Rights in the sphere of economic and social rights.

The Charter of 1961 guarantees the enjoyment, without discrimination, of fundamental social and economic rights defined in the framework of a social policy that Parties undertake to pursue, by all appropriate means (Part I).

Of the rights guaranteed by the Charter, the right to work, the right to organise, the right to bargain collectively, the right to social security, the right to social and medical assistance, the right to the social, legal and economic protection of the family, and the right to protection and assistance for migrant workers and their families are regarded as particularly significant (Part II).