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The right to social security (Art. 9) 2007, para. 28
- Paragraph text
- The right to social security plays an important role in supporting the realization of many of the rights in the Covenant, but other measures are necessary to complement the right to social security. For example, States parties should provide social services for rehabilitation of the injured and persons with disabilities in accordance with article 6 of the Covenant, provide child care and welfare, advice and assistance with family planning and the provision of special facilities for persons with disabilities and older persons (article 10); take measures to combat poverty and social exclusion and provide supporting social services (article 11); and adopt measures to prevent disease and improve health facilities, goods and services (article 12). States parties should also consider schemes that provide social protection to individuals belonging to disadvantaged and marginalized groups, for example crop or natural disaster insurance for small farmers or livelihood protection for self-employed persons in the informal economy. However, the adoption of measures to realize other rights in the Covenant will not in itself act as a substitute for the creation of social security schemes.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Older persons
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2007
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to social security (Art. 9) 2007, para. 65
- Paragraph text
- Violations through acts of omission can occur when the State party fails to take sufficient and appropriate action to realize the right to social security. In the context of social security, examples of such violations include the failure to take appropriate steps towards the full realization of everyone's right to social security; the failure to enforce relevant laws or put into effect policies designed to implement the right to social security; the failure to ensure the financial sustainability of State pension schemes; the failure to reform or repeal legislation which is manifestly inconsistent with the right to social security; the failure to regulate the activities of individuals or groups so as to prevent them from violating the right to social security; the failure to remove promptly obstacles which the State party is under a duty to remove in order to permit the immediate fulfilment of a right guaranteed by the Covenant; the failure to meet the core obligations (see paragraph 59 above); the failure of a State party to take into account its Covenant obligations when entering into bilateral or multilateral agreements with other States, international organizations or multinational corporations.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 2007
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to just and favourable conditions of work (Art. 7) 2016, para. 47b
- Paragraph text
- [The right to just and favourable conditions of work relates to specific workers:] Young workers and older workers: All workers should be protected against age discrimination. Young workers should not suffer wage discrimination, for example, being forced to accept low wages that do not reflect their skills. An excessive use of unpaid internships and training programmes, as well as of short-term and fixed-term contracts that negatively affect job security, career prospects and social security benefits, is not in line with the right to just and favourable conditions of work. Laws and regulations should include specific measures to protect the health and safety of young workers, including through raising the minimum age for certain types of work. Older workers should receive fair wages and equal remuneration for work of equal value, and have equal opportunity for promotion based on their experience and know-how. Specific health and safety measures might be necessary, and older workers should benefit from pre-retirement programmes, if they so wish. The cumulative effects of discrimination against female workers through the life cycle might require targeted measures to achieve equality and guarantee fair wages, equal opportunities for promotion and equal pension rights;
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Youth
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to the highest attainable standard of health (Art. 12) 2000, para. 35
- Paragraph text
- Obligations to protect include, inter alia, the duties of States to adopt legislation or to take other measures ensuring equal access to health care and health-related services provided by third parties; to ensure that privatization of the health sector does not constitute a threat to the availability, accessibility, acceptability and quality of health facilities, goods and services; to control the marketing of medical equipment and medicines by third parties; and to ensure that medical practitioners and other health professionals meet appropriate standards of education, skill and ethical codes of conduct. States are also obliged to ensure that harmful social or traditional practices do not interfere with access to pre- and post-natal care and family-planning; to prevent third parties from coercing women to undergo traditional practices, e.g. female genital mutilation; and to take measures to protect all vulnerable or marginalized groups of society, in particular women, children, adolescents and older persons, in the light of gender-based expressions of violence. States should also ensure that third parties do not limit people's access to health-related information and services.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2000
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Persons with Disabilities 1994, para. 4
- Paragraph text
- In accordance with the approach adopted in the Standard Rules, this general comment uses the term "persons with disabilities" rather than the older term "disabled persons". It has been suggested that the latter term might be misinterpreted to imply that the ability of the individual to function as a person has been disabled.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 1994
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 10
- Paragraph text
- The general recommendation also provides guidance to States parties on the inclusion of the situation of older women in their reports on the implementation of the Convention. The elimination of all forms of discrimination against older women can only be achieved by fully respecting and protecting their dignity and their right to integrity and self-determination.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 4
- Paragraph text
- Current United Nations figures estimate that within 36 years there will be more people over the age of 60 than children under 15 years, globally. It is estimated that by 2050, the number of older people will be over 2 billion, or 22 per cent of the global population, an unprecedented doubling of the present 11 per cent of the population that is over 60.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right of the child to rest, leisure, play, recreational activities, cultural life and the arts 2013, para. 39
- Paragraph text
- Balancing risk and safety: Fears over the physical and human risks to which children are exposed within their local environments are leading, in some parts of the world, to increasing levels of monitoring and surveillance, with consequent constraints on their freedom to play and opportunities for recreation. In addition, children themselves can pose a threat to other children in their play and recreational activities - for example, bullying, abuse of younger children by older children and group pressure to engage in high risk-taking. While children must not be exposed to harm in the realization of their rights under article 31, some degree of risk and challenge is integral to play and recreational activities and is a necessary component of the benefits of these activities. A balance is needed between, on the one hand, taking action to reduce unacceptable hazards in children's environment, such as closing local streets to traffic, improving street lighting or creating safe boundaries for school playgrounds, and on the other hand, informing, equipping and empowering children to take the necessary precautions to enhance their own safety. The best interests of the child and listening to children's experiences and concerns should be mediating principles for determining the level of risk to which children can be exposed.
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of the Child
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Older persons
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- Similarly, recommendation 48 of the International Plan of Action on Ageing encourages Governments and international organizations to support programmes aimed at providing older persons with easier physical access to cultural institutions (museums, theatres, concert halls, cinemas, etc.).
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 29
- Paragraph text
- In order to give effect to the provisions of article 9 of the Covenant, States parties must guarantee the provision of survivors' and orphans' benefits on the death of the breadwinner who was covered by social security or receiving a pension.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 28
- Paragraph text
- In keeping with the recommendations contained in the two ILO Conventions mentioned above and with ILO Recommendation No. 162 concerning Older Workers, the Committee invites States parties to establish retirement age so that it is flexible, depending on the occupations performed and the working ability of elderly persons, with due regard to demographic, economic and social factors.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 26
- Paragraph text
- Article 9 of the Covenant provides generally that States parties "recognize the right of everyone to social security", without specifying the type or level of protection to be guaranteed. However, the term "social security" implicitly covers all the risks involved in the loss of means of subsistence for reasons beyond a person's control.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 23
- Paragraph text
- The right "to the enjoyment of just and favourable conditions of work" (art. 7 of the Covenant) is of special importance for ensuring that older workers enjoy safe working conditions until their retirement. In particular, it is desirable to employ older workers in circumstances in which the best use can be made of their experience and know-how.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 16
- Paragraph text
- Older persons as a group are as heterogeneous and varied as the rest of the population and their situation depends on a country's economic and social situation, on demographic, environmental, cultural and employment factors and, at the individual level, on the family situation, the level of education, the urban or rural environment, and the occupation of workers and retirees.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 6
- Paragraph text
- In 1992, the General Assembly adopted eight global targets on ageing for the year 2001 and a brief guide for setting national targets. In a number of important respects, these global targets serve to reinforce the obligations of States parties to the Covenant.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to education (Art. 13) 1999, para. 24
- Paragraph text
- [The right to fundamental education] It should be emphasized that enjoyment of the right to fundamental education is not limited by age or gender; it extends to children, youth and adults, including older persons. Fundamental education, therefore, is an integral component of adult education and life-long learning. Because fundamental education is a right of all age groups, curricula and delivery systems must be devised which are suitable for students of all ages
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Older persons
- Youth
- Year
- 1999
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- While both men and women experience discrimination as they become older, older women experience ageing differently. The impact of gender inequality throughout their lifespan is exacerbated in old age and is often based on deep-rooted cultural and social norms. The discrimination that older women experience is often a result of unfair resource allocation, maltreatment, neglect and limited access to basic services.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Women and girls with disabilities 2016, para. 59
- Paragraph text
- Women represent a disproportionate percentage of the world's poor as a consequence of discrimination, leading to a lack of choice and opportunities, especially formal employment income. Poverty is both a compounding factor and the result of multiple discrimination. Older women with disabilities, especially, face many difficulties in accessing adequate housing, they are more likely to be institutionalized and do not have equal access to social protection and poverty reduction programs .
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Older persons
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 25
- Paragraph text
- Climate change impacts differently on women, especially older women who, due to their physiological differences, physical ability, age and gender, as well as social norms and roles and an inequitable distribution of aid and resources relating to social hierarchies, are particularly disadvantaged in the face of natural disasters. Their limited access to resources and decision-making processes increases their vulnerability to climate change.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 14
- Paragraph text
- Many older women face neglect as they are no longer considered useful in their productive and reproductive roles, and are seen as a burden on their families. Widowhood and divorce further exacerbate discrimination, while lack of or limited access to health-care services for diseases and conditions, such as diabetes, cancer, hypertension, heart disease, cataract, osteoporosis and Alzheimer, prevent older women from enjoying their full human rights.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 13
- Paragraph text
- The discrimination experienced by older women is often multidimensional, with the age factor compounding other forms of discrimination based on gender, ethnic origin, disability, poverty levels, sexual orientation and gender identity, migrant status, marital and family status, literacy and other grounds. Older women who are members of minority, ethnic or indigenous groups, internally displaced or stateless often experience a disproportionate degree of discrimination.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 8
- Paragraph text
- Older women are not a homogeneous group. They have a great diversity of experience, knowledge, ability and skills, however, their economic and social situation is dependent on a range of demographic, political, environmental, cultural, social, individual and family factors. The contribution of older women in public and private life as leaders in their communities, entrepreneurs, caregivers, advisers, mediators, among other roles, is invaluable.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 5
- Paragraph text
- The gendered nature of ageing reveals that women tend to live longer than men, and that more older women than men live alone. While there are 83 men for every 100 women over the age of 60, there are only 59 men for every 100 women over the age of 80. Further, statistics from the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs indicate that 80 per cent of men over 60 are married compared with only 48 per cent of older women.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Men
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Women and health 1999, para. 24
- Paragraph text
- The Committee is concerned about the conditions of health-care services for older women, not only because women often live longer than men and are more likely than men to suffer from disabling and degenerative chronic diseases, such as osteoporosis and dementia, but because they often have the responsibility for their ageing spouses. Therefore, States parties should take appropriate measures to ensure the access of older women to health services that address the handicaps and disabilities associated with ageing.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 1999
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 32
- Paragraph text
- Principle 1 of the United Nations Principles for Older Persons, which stands at the beginning of the section relating to the independence of older persons, provides that: "Older persons should have access to adequate food, water, shelter, clothing and health care through the provision of income, family and community support and self-help." The Committee attaches great importance to this principle, which demands for older persons the rights contained in article 11 of the Covenant.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 27
- Paragraph text
- In accordance with article 9 of the Covenant and the provisions concerning implementation of the ILO social security conventions - Convention No. 102 (1952) concerning Social Security (Minimum Standards) and Convention No. 128 (1967) concerning Invalidity, Old-Age and Survivors' Benefits - States parties must take appropriate measures to establish general regimes of compulsory old-age insurance, starting at a particular age, to be prescribed by national law.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 22
- Paragraph text
- Article 6 of the Covenant requires States parties to take appropriate steps to safeguard the right of everyone to the opportunity to gain a living by work which is freely chosen or accepted. In this regard, the Committee, bearing in mind that older workers who have not reached retirement age often encounter problems in finding and keeping jobs, stresses the need for measures to prevent discrimination on grounds of age in employment and occupation.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- Another important issue is whether discrimination on the basis of age is prohibited by the Covenant. Neither the Covenant nor the Universal Declaration of Human Rights refers explicitly to age as one of the prohibited grounds. Rather than being seen as an intentional exclusion, this omission is probably best explained by the fact that, when these instruments were adopted, the problem of demographic ageing was not as evident or as pressing as it is now.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Accessibility 2014, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- It is necessary to establish minimum standards for the accessibility of different services provided by public and private enterprises for persons with different types of impairments. Reference tools such as the ITU-T recommendation Telecommunications Accessibility Checklist for standardization activities (2006) and the Telecommunications accessibility guidelines for older persons and persons with disabilities (ITU-T recommendation F.790) should be mainstreamed whenever a new ICT-related standard is developed. That would allow the generalization of universal design in the development of standards. States parties should establish a legislative framework with specific, enforceable, time-bound benchmarks for monitoring and assessing the gradual modification and adjustment by private entities of their previously inaccessible services into accessible ones. States parties should also ensure that all newly procured goods and services are fully accessible for persons with disabilities. Minimum standards must be developed in close consultation with persons with disabilities and their representative organizations, in accordance with article 4, paragraph 3, of the Convention. The standards can also be developed in collaboration with other States parties and international organizations and agencies through international cooperation, in accordance with article 32 of the Convention. States parties are encouraged to join ITU study groups in the radiocommunication, standardization and development sectors of the Union, which actively work at mainstreaming accessibility in the development of international telecommunications and ICT standards and at raising industry's and governments' awareness of the need to increase access to ICT for persons with disabilities. Such cooperation can be useful in developing and promoting international standards that contribute to the interoperability of goods and services. In the field of communication-related services, States parties must ensure at least a minimum quality of services, especially for the relatively new types of services, such as personal assistance, sign language interpretation and tactile signing, aiming at their standardization.
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to work (Art. 6) 2005, para. 16
- Paragraph text
- The Committee recalls its general comment No. 6 (1995) on the economic, social and cultural rights of older persons and in particular the need to take measures to prevent discrimination on grounds of age in employment and occupation.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 2005
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph