RES/31/15 The right to work

Human Rights Council Thirty-first session

Agenda item 3

Resolution adopted by the Human Rights Council on 23 March 2016

31/15. The right to work

The Human Rights Council,

Guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,

Reaffirming the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Vienna Declaration

and Programme of Action, and recalling the International Covenant on Economic, Social

and Cultural Rights and other international human rights instruments relevant to the right to

work,

Reaffirming also Human Rights Council resolution 28/15 of 26 March 2015 on the

right to work,

Recalling General Assembly resolution 63/199 of 19 December 2008 entitled

“International Labour Organization Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization”

and Economic and Social Council resolutions 2007/2 of 17 July 2007 entitled “The role of

the United Nations system in providing full and productive employment and decent work

for all” and 2008/18 of 24 July 2008 entitled “Promoting full employment and decent work

for all”,

Recalling also the International Labour Organization Declaration on Fundamental

Principles and Rights at Work and its follow-up, adopted by the International Labour

Conference at its eighty-sixth session, on 18 June 1998, the Declaration on Social Justice for a

Fair Globalization, adopted by the Conference at its ninety-seventh session, on 10 June 2008,

the Global Jobs Pact, adopted by the Conference at its ninety-eighth session, on 19 June 2009,

the resolution of the International Labour Organization on the follow-up to its Declaration on

Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, adopted by the Conference at its ninety-ninth

session, on 15 June 2010, and the resolution concerning gender equality at the heart of decent

work adopted by the General Conference of the International Labour Organization at its ninety-

eighth session, on 17 June 2009,

Recognizing the primary role, mandate, expertise and specialization of the

International Labour Organization within the United Nations system in relation to the

promotion of decent work and full and productive employment for all, welcoming its

initiatives and activities in this regard, including the Decent Work Agenda, and noting the

United Nations A/HRC/RES/31/15

recently launched centenary initiatives of the International Labour Organization on the future

of work and on women at work,

Reaffirming that all human rights and civil, political, economic, social and cultural

rights, including the right to development, are universal, indivisible, interrelated,

interdependent and mutually reinforcing, and that all human rights must be treated in a fair

and equal manner, on the same footing and with the same emphasis,

Emphasizing that States should undertake to guarantee that the right to work is to be

exercised without discrimination of any kind as to race, colour, sex, language, religion,

political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status,

Emphasizing also that the right to work is not only essential for realizing other

human rights but also an inseparable and inherent part of human dignity and is important to

ensure the satisfaction of human needs and values that are central to a dignified life,

Recognizing that full and productive employment and decent work for all are key

elements of poverty-reduction strategies that facilitate the achievement of the

internationally agreed development goals, in particular the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable

Development,1 and that they require a multidimensional focus that incorporates

Governments, the private sector, civil society organizations, representatives of employers

and workers, international organizations and, in particular, the agencies of the United

Nations system and the international financial institutions,

1. Takes note with appreciation of the report of the United Nations High

Commissioner for Human Rights on the realization of the right to work; 2

2. Reaffirms, as enshrined in the International Covenant on Economic, Social

and Cultural Rights, the right to work, which includes the right of everyone to the

opportunity to gain his or her living by work which he or she freely chooses or accepts, and

that States should take steps to achieve the full realization of that right, including technical

and vocational guidance and training programmes, policies and techniques, to achieve

steady economic, social and cultural development and full and productive employment

under conditions safeguarding the fundamental political and economic freedoms of the

individual;

3. Also reaffirms, as enshrined in the International Covenant on Economic,

Social and Cultural Rights, the right of everyone to the enjoyment of just and favourable

conditions of work which ensure, in particular, remuneration which provides all workers, as

a minimum, with fair wages and equal remuneration for work of equal value without

distinction of any kind, in particular women being guaranteed conditions of work not

inferior to those enjoyed by men, with equal pay for equal work; a decent living for

themselves and their families; safe and healthy working conditions; equal opportunity for

everyone to be promoted in his or her employment to an appropriate higher level, subject to

no considerations other than those of seniority and competence; and rest, leisure and

reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay, and remuneration

for public holidays;

4. Further reaffirms that States have the primary responsibility to ensure the full

realization of all human rights and to endeavour to take steps, individually and through

international assistance and cooperation, especially economic and technical, to the

maximum of their available resources, with a view to progressively achieving the full

realization of the right to work, including in particular the adoption of legislative measures;

1 General Assembly resolution 70/1.

2 A/HRC/31/32.

5. Recognizes that ensuring equality and non-discrimination in access to work is

crucial in addressing the social prejudices and disadvantages that might exist in the labour

market and undermine equality and dignity;

6. Stresses that the freedom to work, which is included in the right to work,

entails the right to pursue professional options under equal conditions without unjustified

barriers;

7. Also stresses that States, as provided for by the relevant international legal

instruments, should prohibit forced and compulsory labour and punish the use of it in all its

forms;

8. Emphasizes that the right to work entails, inter alia, the right not to be

deprived of work arbitrarily and unfairly, and that States, in accordance with the relevant

obligations in relation to the right to work, are required to put in place measures ensuring

the protection of workers against unlawful dismissal;

9. Underscores the equal right of men and women to the enjoyment of all

human rights, including the right to work, and that equal access to work is pivotal to the full

enjoyment of all human rights by women, while recognizing that women are on many

occasions subject to discrimination in the context of realizing their rights in that regard on

an equal basis with men and are disproportionately exposed to the most precarious working

conditions, including limited or no legal protection, lower levels of remuneration and

involuntary temporary and part-time employment, and are disproportionately burdened with

unpaid care work, which may constitute on many occasions a barrier to women’s greater

involvement in the labour market;

10. Stresses that States should take all appropriate measures to eliminate

discrimination against women in the field of employment and to tackle any structural

barrier to employment opportunities, such as in education, health, work and life balance and

lack of maternity protection, in order to ensure, on a basis of equality of men and women,

the same rights, including in particular the rights to work, the same employment

opportunities, promotion, free choice of profession and employment, job security and all

benefits and conditions of service, and the rights to receive vocational training and

retraining, equal remuneration, equal treatment in respect to work of equal value, social

security and protection of health and safety in working conditions;

11. Recognizes that progress has been made, yet is deeply concerned that many

persons with disabilities in all regions continue to face significant obstacles in exercising

their right to work on an equal basis with others and that persons with disabilities are

frequently subject to less favourable conditions of pay, precarious work regimes and poor

career prospects in a context of environmental, social and economic barriers in their access

to work and within work, and in education and training, which results on many occasions in

neglect of their potential and restrictions on opportunities to earn a living through their

capabilities, and in this regard encourages States to take all appropriate measures to prohibit

discrimination against persons with disabilities in all matters concerning access to

employment and job opportunities, including in relation to equal conditions of pay, hiring

and career advancement;

12. Underscores the responsibility of the State to protect children from economic

exploitation and from performing any work that is likely to be hazardous or to interfere

with their education or to be harmful to their health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral or

social development;

13. Expresses concern that global unemployment stood at 197 million in 2015,

representing an increase of nearly 1 million compared with the previous year and of about

27 million compared with 2007, and about the severe impact that the international

economic and financial crisis has had in that regard, and notes with concern that the global

level of women’s participation in the labour force is 27 per cent lower than that of men;

14. Expresses deep concern that, in 2015, approximately 71.3 million young

people were unemployed and that the global youth unemployment rate was around 13.1 per

cent, while the global employment rate for young women was 15 percentage points lower

than that for young men, resolves in that regard to pay particular attention to the realization

of the right to work for young people, bearing in mind the fundamental importance of equal

opportunities, education and vocational training in the context of realizing that right, and

emphasizes that full and productive employment for young people plays an important role

in their empowerment and can contribute to, inter alia, the prevention of extremism,

terrorism and social, economic and political instability;

15. Stresses that technical and vocational education and guidance are necessary

measures for the realization of the right to work for all;

16. Welcomes the adoption by the General Assembly of the 2030 Agenda for

Sustainable Development, including, inter alia, its Goal 8, on promoting sustained,

inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent

work for all, and its targets;

17. Recognizes the fundamental importance of international cooperation,

including through technical cooperation, capacity-building, exchange of relevant lessons

learned and good practices, in advancing efforts towards the full realization of the right to

work through full and productive employment and decent work for all;

18. Calls upon States to put in place comprehensive policies and to take the

legislative and administrative measures necessary for the full realization of the right to

work, including by considering to undertake policy commitments and measures to obtain

full and productive employment and decent work for all, including through the

establishment, where appropriate, of institutions for that purpose and by further

strengthening tools such as job services and social dialogue mechanisms, while paying

continuous attention to professional and technical training and initiatives to foster small and

medium-sized enterprises and cooperatives;

19. Recognizes that employment should be a central objective of economic and

social policies at the national, regional and international levels for the sustainable

eradication of poverty and for providing an adequate standard of living, and emphasizes in

that regard the importance of relevant social protection measures, including social

protection floors;

20. Highlights the vital role of the private sector in generating new investments,

job opportunities and financing for development and in advancing efforts towards the full

realization of the right to work and the promotion of full and productive employment and

decent work for all;

21 Recognizes the important contribution of workers’ and employers’

organizations in the area of full and productive employment and decent work for all;

22. Underscores that there is an urgent need to create an environment at the

national and international levels that is conducive to the attainment of full and productive

employment and decent work for all as a foundation for sustainable development, and that

an environment that supports investment, growth and entrepreneurship is essential to the

creation of new job opportunities, and reaffirms that opportunities for men and women to

obtain productive work in conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity are

essential to ensure the eradication of hunger and poverty, the improvement of economic and

social well-being for all, the achievement of sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic

growth and sustainable development of all nations and a fully inclusive and equitable

globalization;

23. Acknowledges the work of the treaty bodies, in particular the Committee on

Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, in relation to the right to work;

24. Also acknowledges the work of United Nations agencies, programmes and

funds, in particular the International Labour Organization, in supporting the efforts of

States to promote full and productive employment and decent work for all and the full

realization of the right to work;

25. Requests the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to

prepare an analytical report, in consultation with States, United Nations agencies, funds and

programmes, particularly the International Labour Organization, and the treaty bodies,

special procedures, civil society and other relevant stakeholders, on the relationship

between the realization of the right to work and the enjoyment of all human rights by

women, with a particular emphasis on the empowerment of women, in accordance with

States’ respective obligations under international human rights law and the relevant major

challenges and best practices in that regard, and to submit the report to the Human Rights

Council prior to its thirty-fourth session;

26. Decides to remain seized of the matter.

63rd meeting

23 March 2016

[Adopted without a vote.]