The right to work as a social right in the Italian Constitution and in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. A constitutional perspective

Moving from a recollection of the Italian academic debate concerning the no tion of “social rights”, the paper aims to offer a definition of “social rights” through which to look at the “right to work”, as outlined by art. 4 of the Italian Constitution and by the rulings of Constitutional Court. On this basis, the Italian Constitution shall be compared to the European Charter of Fundamental Rights, in order to de termine whether the “right to work” enjoys the same kind of legal protection both at the national and at the European level.