What are the aspects of the Social Chapter of the Maastricht Treaty?
The essential essence of the social chapter of the Maastricht Treaty was to standardise working conditions for employees across the European Union. The Chapter guaranteed workers across the EU the right to join a trade union if they so wished, to take industrial action against their employer if they felt it was called for, the right to be consulted and informed about company plans (e.g. they would have to be told about plant closures, expansions, redundancies etc.), the right to equal treatment for women and men, the right to a minimum wage and a maximum working week of 48 hours and the right to a minimum of 4 weeks paid holiday per year. The conservative government in 1993 did not sign the chapter fearing the consequences of extra costs on British business; however, the labour government elected in 1997 has decided to sign the chapter.
