Only two European countries have ratified the ILO Convention 190 'Convention concerning the elimination of violence and harassment in the world of work': Greece and Italy.

Judith Kirton-Darling, industriAll Europe Deputy General Secretary: “Two countries signing ILO Convention 190 is a start and a step forward. We call on all other states to follow suit.”

At the same time, important political initiatives have been stalled. At European Union level, proposals for the prevention of and fight against “specific forms of gender-based violence” have disappeared from the European Commission’s agenda.

Judith Kirton-Darling: “This is frustrating and unacceptable. IndustriAll Europe expects the European Commission to deliver effective policies to counter gender-based violence. And we ask the European Union to speed up its accession to the Istanbul Convention.”

The Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention) is the first legally binding international instrument in this field at international level.

Judith Kirton-Darling: “Violence against women and girls has increased since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some EU Member States have the highest murder rates of women in years or even decades. We really have no time to lose!”


ETUC press release


Contact: Andrea Husen-Bradley (press and communication), Maike Niggemann (policy adviser)