Social security - Protection at the international level and developments in Europe

What international and European legal instruments protect the right to social security? What are the obligations which states have assumed under these instruments? How is their application monitored? What are the trends in national legislation in relation to the standards of the European Code of Social Security and its protocol, the main Council of Europe instruments in the social security field? Is social security considered as a human right and how has the case law of the European Court of Human Rights developed in this area? These are some of the key issues addressed in this publication, where the code and its protocol are viewed against the background of other standard-setting instruments, developments at national level and human rights.

Introduction Chapter I - International standard-setting instruments on social security and monitoring arrangements 1. Universal instruments of the United Nations 2. Instruments of the International Labour Organization (ILO) 3. Instruments of the Council of Europe 4. Instruments of the European Union Chapter II - States' obligations under European legislation (Code and European Social Charter) and ILO legal instruments 1. Countries that have ratified the European Code of Social Security/ Protocol 2. Countries that have not ratified the European Code of Social Security/ Protocol Chapter III - The development of social security in Europe since 1990 1. General features of the 1990s 2. Questions remaining to be answered in the 21st century Chapter IV - Application of the European Code of Social Security and its Protocol A. The protection provided by the Code/Protocol B. Supervisory machinery C. Developments in the different branches, and the main problems raised by the supervisory bodies 1. Medical care and the preservation of health 2. Sickness benefit and redistribution of responsibilities 3. Unemployment benefit and active labour market policies 4. Outlook for the "employment injury" branch 5. Family benefit and children's entitlement 6. Positive trends in maternity benefit 7. Viability of pensions 8. Conclusion Chapter V - Promotion of social security standards by the Council of Europe 1. Co-operation and assistance with a view to signature and ratification of the standard-setting instruments 2. Technical co-operation with countries that have ratified the standard-setting instruments Chapter VI - Social security as a human right: the protection afforded by the European Convention on Human Rights 1. Introduction 2. Case law of the European Court of Human Rights 2.1. Protection of procedural rights in the social security field 2.2. Protection of substantive rights in the social security field 3. Execution of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights 4. Examples of execution measures adopted by states 5. Conclusion Conclusion