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[Insert statement of urgency and significance for why this right relates to AI.]
Sectors #
The contributors of the AI & Human Rights Index have identified the following sectors as responsible for both using AI to protect and advance this human right.
- FIN: Financial Services
- GOV: Government and Public Sector
- SOC: Social Services and Housing
- WORK: Employment and Labor
AI’s Potential Violations #
[Insert 300- to 500-word analysis of how AI could violate this human right.]
AI’s Potential Benefits #
[Insert 300- to 500-word analysis of how AI could advance this human right.]
Human Rights Instruments #
U.N. Charter (1945) #
1 U.N.T.S. XVI, U.N. Charter (June 26, 1945)
Article 55
Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social Security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his Dignity and the free development of his personality.
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) #
G.A. Res. 217 (III) A, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, U.N. Doc. A/RES/217(III) (Dec. 10, 1948)
Article 22
Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social Security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his Dignity and the free development of his personality.
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (1965) #
G.A. Res. 2106 A (XX), International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, U.N. Doc. A/RES/2106 A(XX) (Dec. 21, 1965)
Article 5
In compliance with the fundamental obligations laid down in article 2 of this Convention, States Parties undertake to prohibit and to eliminate racial discrimination in all its forms and to guarantee the right of everyone, without distinction as to race, colour, or national or ethnic origin, to Equality before the law, notably in the enjoyment of the following rights:
(iv) The right to public health, medical care, social Security and social services;
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966) #
G.A. Res. 2200A (XXI), International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, U.N. Doc. A/6316 (1966), 993 U.N.T.S. 3 (Dec. 16, 1966)
Article 9
The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone to social Security, including social insurance.
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979) #
G.A. Res. 34/180, Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, U.N. Doc. A/RES/34/180 (Dec. 18, 1979)
Article 11
1. States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women in the field of employment in order to ensure, on a basis of Equality of men and women, the same rights, in particular: (a) The right to work as an inalienable right of all human beings;
(b) The right to the same employment opportunities, including the application of the same criteria for selection in matters of employment;
(c) The right to free choice of profession and employment, the right to promotion, job Security and all benefits and conditions of service and the right to receive vocational training and retraining, including apprenticeships, advanced vocational training and recurrent training;
(d) The right to equal remuneration, including benefits, and to equal treatment in respect of work of equal value, as well as Equality of treatment in the Evaluation of the quality of work;
(e) The right to social Security, particularly in cases of retirement, unemployment, sickness, invalidity and old age and other incapacity to work, as well as the right to paid leave;
(f) The right to protection of health and to Safety in working conditions, including the safeguarding of the function of reproduction.
2. In order to prevent discrimination against women on the grounds of marriage or maternity and to ensure their effective right to work, States Parties shall take appropriate measures: (a) To prohibit, subject to the imposition of sanctions, dismissal on the grounds of pregnancy or of maternity leave and discrimination in dismissals on the basis of marital status;
(b) To introduce maternity leave with pay or with comparable social benefits without loss of former employment, seniority or social allowances;
(c) To encourage the provision of the necessary supporting social services to enable parents to combine family obligations with work responsibilities and participation in public life, in particular through promoting the establishment and development of a network of child-care facilities;
(d) To provide special protection to women during pregnancy in types of work proved to be harmful to them.
3. Protective legislation relating to matters covered in this article shall be reviewed periodically in the light of scientific and technological knowledge and shall be revised, repealed or extended as necessary.
Article 14
1. States Parties shall take into account the particular problems faced by rural women and the significant roles which rural women play in the economic survival of their families, including their work in the non-monetized sectors of the economy, and shall take all appropriate measures to ensure the application of the provisions of the present Convention to women in rural areas.
2. States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women in rural areas in order to ensure, on a basis of Equality of men and women, that they participate in and benefit from rural development and, in particular, shall ensure to such women the right:
(a) To participate in the elaboration and implementation of development planning at all levels;
(b) To have access to adequate health care facilities, including information, counselling and services in family planning;
(c) To benefit directly from social Security programmes;
(d) To obtain all types of training and education, formal and non-formal, including that relating to functional literacy, as well as, inter alia, the benefit of all community and extension services, in order to increase their technical proficiency;
(e) To organize self-help groups and co-operatives in order to obtain equal access to economic opportunities through employment or self employment;
(f) To participate in all community activities;
(g) To have access to agricultural credit and loans, marketing facilities, appropriate technology and equal treatment in land and agrarian reform as well as in land resettlement schemes;
(h) To enjoy adequate living conditions, particularly in relation to housing, sanitation, electricity and water supply, transport and communications.
Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) #
G.A. Res. 44/25, Convention on the Rights of the Child, U.N. Doc. A/RES/44/25 (Nov. 20, 1989)
Article 26
1. States Parties shall recognize for every child the right to benefit from social Security, including social insurance, and shall take the necessary measures to achieve the full realization of this right in accordance with their national law.
2. The benefits should, where appropriate, be granted, taking into account the resources and the circumstances of the child and persons having responsibility for the maintenance of the child, as well as any other consideration relevant to an application for benefits made by or on behalf of the child.
Last Updated: October 17, 2025
Research Assistants: Laiba Mehmood, Amisha Rastogi
Contributor: To Be Determined
Reviewer: Laiba Mehmood
Editor: Caitlin Corrigan
Subject: Human Right
Edition: Edition 1.0 Research
Recommended Citation: "XI.J. Right to Social Security, Edition 1.0 Research." In AI & Human Rights Index, edited by Nathan C. Walker, Dirk Brand, Caitlin Corrigan, Georgina Curto Rex, Alexander Kriebitz, John Maldonado, Kanshukan Rajaratnam, and Tanya de Villiers-Botha. New York: All Tech is Human; Camden, NJ: AI Ethics Lab at Rutgers University, 2025. Accessed December 05, 2025. https://aiethicslab.rutgers.edu/Docs/xi-j-social-security/.