European standards for ensuring the right to work

• Published in: Науковий вісник Ужгородського національного університету. Серія Право Vol. 2; no. 88; pp. 180 - 185
• Main Author: Cherevko, N. O.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 20.05.2025
• ISSN: 2307-3322; 2664-6153
• DOI: 10.24144/2307-3322.2025.88.2.24

In the EU countries, high standards have been established regarding access to work, non-discrimination, fair employment conditions, and protection of employees in the labor market, but in Ukraine, they have not been fully implemented. In particular, the rights to work of young people, persons with disabilities, internally displaced persons, etc. Against the background of the growing influence of European legal standards in the process of lawmaking in Ukraine, there is a need to understand the essence of European standards for ensuring the right to work, their structure, sources, and implementation mechanisms. The above-mentioned makes the study of European standards for ensuring the right to work as a tool for reforming and improving labor legislation in Ukraine relevant. The purpose of this article is to analyze the content of European standards for ensuring the right to work as a component of the human rights system, to clarify their role in the formation of modern labor law, and to determine guidelines for adapting Ukrainian legislation to these standards in the context of the state’s European integration course. The article examines modern approaches to the implementation of the right to work in the European legal space. This right is not directly provided for in the text of the European Convention on Human Rights, but it is recognized and protected through a number of related provisions, in particular on freedom of association, non-discrimination, as well as in the context of property rights. Particular attention is paid to the provisions of the European Social Charter, in particular Article 1, which defines the key directions of state policy in ensuring employment, vocational guidance and social protection. The study also analyzes the role of the European Pillar of Social Rights as a new instrument of the European Union’s social policy, which contributes to the unification of approaches to labor standards, despite the lack of direct competence in the EU to regulate the right to work itself. Special attention is paid to the legal nature of Directive 2022/2041 on adequate minimum wages and its potential impact on Member States. Using the example of the current practice of the ECHR regarding Ukraine, it is highlighted how in specific cases related to delays in payments, discrimination, dismissals and restrictions on trade union activities, the court interprets socio-economic rights in an expanded manner. It is concluded that European mechanisms are gradually forming a comprehensive vision of the right to work as a component of human dignity and social security. The results of the study show that European standards in the field of ensuring the right to work form not only the legal basis for the harmonization of national labor legislation, but also serve as a value guide for social policy aimed at ensuring the dignity of work, social justice and sustainable economic development.