According to Strasbourg, “Italy has violated women’s rights because it has made insufficient measurable progress in promoting equal opportunities for equal pay”.
The 11 states involved in the research
The countries called into question by the NGO together with theItaly I’m Belgium, Bulgaria, Cipro, Croatia, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Norway, Netherlands, Portugal, Czech Republic, Slovenia e Sweden. They are the only states that have accepted that the EDC will judge – also through the complaints submitted by various organizations, including other NGOs – on the compliance or otherwise of what is imposed on them by the European Social Charter.
Sweden, the only exception
Except for Sweden, the committee rejected all countries because they violate women’s rights in one way or another. Strasbourg has highlighted that the problem is not the laws, because all countries have legislation that recognizes the right to equal pay for equivalent work. But this aspect alone is not enough to change the situation, stressed Strasbourg, and must be accompanied by policies and measures to facilitate the achievement of equality between women and men. For the committee, only Sweden, Belgium and Cyprus have made measurable progress in promoting equal pay.
Italy case: “There are no adequate measures”
In Italy, the European Committee of Social Rights has highlighted the lack of adequate measures to promote women’s rights to equal opportunities on the labor market. “The government itself has acknowledged that there are no positive measures to reconcile personal and professional life,” the Committee put on paper, citing insufficient subsidies for services such as nursery schools as an example.
“The pay gap between women and men is unacceptable, yet it continues to be one of the main obstacles to achieving real equality in modern societies,” he said. Marija Pejcinovic Buric, secretary general of the Council of Europe. “European governments must urgently step up efforts to ensure equal professional opportunities,” he added, stating that “more countries should use the European Social Charter as a tool to achieve this goal.”
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