The Charter of the Fundamental Social Rights of Workers, known as the Social Charter, was adopted in 1989. It is seen as a political instrument containing “moral obligations” whose object is to guarantee that certain social rights are respected in the countries concerned. These relate primarily to the labour market, vocational training, social protection, equal opportunities and health and safety at work. It also contains an explicit request to the Commission to put forward proposals for translating the content of the Social Charter into legislation. The Social Charter has been followed up by action programmes and specific legislative proposals.