Social Rights in the European Union: The Possible Added Value of a Binding Charter of Fundamental Rights

Abstract

The Chapter tackles the delicate issue of social rights within the EU legal order. While Member States recognize social rights to various extents, the EU has limited competences in this field. On the other hand, the Court of Justice actively contributed to their promotion, affirmation and development, thereby raising concerns as to the possible widening of supranational competences through judicial activism. In this sense it is suggested that in the absence of binding social norms at the EU level, the Open Method of Coordination may prove to be useful in promoting a more uniform approach and reducing the risk of a race-to-the-bottom effect due to regulatory competition. With the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, social rights are equated to civil and political rights (as the newly binding Charter postulates the indivisibility of fundamental rights), but are not necessarily (directly) enforceable (nor, a fortiori, will their violation entail sanctions). What is clear is that they have entered the judicial arena and that in the future the ECJ will face an ever increasing number of cases presupposing a balancing of economic freedoms and social rights.