| Abstract: | The system of collective complaints established by a Protocolto the European Social Charter has now been in force for a decade.The Protocol gives the European Committee on Social Rights (ECSR)the competence to examine complaints by social partner organisationsand non-governmental organisations (NGOs). The procedural aspectsof the system have been criticised, particularly the lack ofremedial powers and the significant role played by the Committeeof Ministers. Nonetheless, it is important to examine the practiceof the ECSR in deciding collective complaints, which revealsthat the ECSR has developed considerable economic and socialrights jurisprudence. It has articulated and elaborated on thevalues underlying the Charter. It has also employed techniquesof reasoning drawn in part from the European Court of HumanRights. The collective complaints system can therefore be regardedas a quasi-judicial process—the first in internationallaw specifically for economic and social rights. |
