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European Committee of Social Rights Publishes annual report

The European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) has published its Annual Activity Report for 2023. The report provides an account of many aspects of the ECSR’s work throughout the year, in particular the monitoring of the compliance of states with the Charter, but also a wide range of other activities, such as the procedure on non-accepted provisions, ongoing work to strengthen the Charter treaty system, relations with other international bodies and awareness-raising and promotion of the Charter and the ECSR’s case law.

The report highlights positive developments, especially in protecting children and young people from cyber threats and improving labour regulations. However, it also identifies several gaps, including issues related to the rights of migrant workers, homelessness, and protection against dismissal during pregnancy, etc. These developments were identified in the framework of the reporting procedure under the European Social Charter (ESC), and more specifically in the 799 conclusions that the ECSR adopted in 2023, which include 416 conclusions of conformity and 383 conclusions of non-conformity across 32 States Parties.

Regarding the follow-up to complaints, the ECSR published its findings for eight States Parties, identifying persistent issues in addressing the gender pay gap, housing for Roma, healthcare discrimination, and inclusive education for children with intellectual disabilities. These findings highlight the need for continued efforts to align national practices with the standards of the Charter.

The Fourth Summit of the Council of Europe, held in Reykjavik in May 2023, marked a pivotal moment for social rights. The declaration adopted at the summit underscored the importance of social justice for democratic stability and security and reaffirmed the commitment of member states to strengthening social rights as guaranteed by the Charter.

Building on this momentum and in the framework of its Presidency of the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers, Lithuania will host a high-level conference on the ESC in Vilnius on 4 July 2024. The conference is expected to serve as a platform for member states to reaffirm the importance of the Charter and its monitoring procedures, advancing the collective pursuit of social justice across Europe.

In the introduction to the activity report, ECSR President Aoife Nolan points out that in the ECSR’s contribution to the high-level conference several measures have been proposed aimed at enhancing the ECSR’s efficiency and impact. These measures include, for example, removing the embargo on publishing ECSR decisions on collective complaints and increasing the number of ECSR members.

Looking ahead, the ECSR aims to ensure that social rights and justice remain central to the Council of Europe’s mission of ensuring democratic stability in Europe.

EUROPEAN COMMITTEE OF SOCIAL RIGHTS (ECSR) STRASBOURG 27 JUNE 2024
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The Council of Europe is the continent’s leading human rights organisation, with 46 member states, including Armenia. All our member states are party to the European Convention on Human Rights, which is the cornerstone of human rights protection in Europe.

The Council of Europe Office in Yerevan, represents the Secretary General in Armenia. It closely co-operates with national authorities supporting the implementation of statutory obligations to the Council of Europe by Armenia through co-operation projects.


 

Armenia and the Council of Europe – bringing human rights from the conference table to your kitchen table

The Council of Europe works for you. We want to give visibility to the role, standards and work of the Council of Europe in its member states, to show how Council of Europe membership has helped achieve particular results or changes. Our aim, through a variety of events and actions, is to highlight ways in which the Council of Europe’s action has helped improve the life of individuals and contributed to improving people’s enjoyment of fundamental rights.

 

Whether it is the impact of the European Convention on Human Rights at national level, or the Council of Europe's work in many fields, such as working to abolish the death penalty or to ensure freedom of expression and freedom of the media, or to adress online and technology-facilitated violence against women through the Istanbul Convention and Budapest Convention on Cybercrime, the Council of Europe has achieved a lot since 1949. View achievements »