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The protection of the worker`s right to freedom of association: the ECtHR caselaw

Summary: 1. Introduction. – 2. Positive and Negative Obligations of the State in Protecting the Right to Freedom of Association. – 3. The Legal Nature and Content of the Right to Freedom of Association. – 4. Restrictions on the Freedom of Trade Unions. – 5. Conclusions.

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Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of the freedom of association of workers as an important element of the mechanism of the protection of labour rights, and also as a tool for effective social dialogue aimed at improving working conditions and ensuring the socio-economic well-being of workers. It is established that although the right to form and join trade unions under the ECHR is part of the right to freedom of association, its content is quite broad, as it is determined by the purpose of such association, which is to protect the interests of workers. Therefore, a wide range of collective redress, including the right to collective bargaining and the right to strike, are now an integral part of the right of workers to form or join trade unions. The study pays special attention to the analysis of the case-law of the ECtHR, which allowed the author to identify key elements of the content of the right of employees to association and determine the positive and negative obligations of the state that are necessary to ensure its effectiveness and protection. Taking this analysis into account and examining the national case-law, gaps in the legal regulation of freedom of association of workers in Ukraine have been identified, and proposals for their elimination have been made

About Authors

CONTRIBUTOR

The author has solely planned this study and is responsible for the data acquisition and interpretation, manuscript writing, revision, and final approval.


Dr. Iryna Sakharuk is an Assoc. Prof. at the Law School, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Ukraine.
 sakharuk_iryna@knu.ua

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The author would like to express her gratitude to the reviewers and translators, language editors, etc.

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

The author declares that she has no financial or non-financial conflicts of interest in relation to this publication. She has no relationships with the commercial companies or other organisations, including trade unions, that might have an interest in the submission of this viewpoint.

DISCLAIMER

The author declares that she was not involved in the analysed activities and has no relations with these bodies.

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Захист прав працівників на свободу асоціації в контексті практии Європейського суду з прав людини 

Ірина Сахарук, кандидат юридичних наук, доцент кафедри трудового права та права соціального забезпечення, Інститут права Київського національного університету імені Тараса Шевченка 

sakharuk_iryna@knu.ua 
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9146-2491

Анотація Стаття присвячена дослідженню свободи асоціації працівників як важливого елементу механізму захисту трудових прав, а також інструменту ефективного соціального діалогу, направленого на покращення умов праці та забезпечення соціально-економічного добробуту працівників. Встановлено, що хоча право створювати профспілки та вступати в них згідно Конвенції є складовою права на свободу об’єднання, його зміст є досить широким, оскільки визначається метою такого об’єднання – захистом інтересів працівників. Тому, значний спектр засобів колективного захисту, в тому числі право на колективні переговори та право на страйк, на сьогодні є невід’ємною складовою права працівників створювати або вступати в профспілки. Особливу увагу в дослідженні приділено аналізу прецедентної практики ЄСПЛ, що дозволило встановити ключові елементи змісту права працівників на об’єднання, визначити позитивні та негативні зобов’язання держави, необхідні для забезпечення ефективності його реалізації й захисту. З врахуванням такого аналізу та дослідивши національну судову практику, визначено прогалини у правовому регулюванні свободи асоціації працівників в Україні та внесено пропозиції щодо їх усунення. 

Ключові слова: свобода асоціації, професійна спілка, захист від дискримінації, страйк, колективні переговори, практика ЄСПЛ

Keywords

  • freedom of association; trade union; protection against discrimination; strike; collective bargaining; case-law of the ECtH

How to cite it?

  • I Sakharuk, ‘The protection of the worker`s right to freedom of association: the ECtHR caselaw’ 2021 1(9) Access to Justice in Eastern Europe 166–185. DOI: 10.33327/AJEE-18-4.1-a000051