Women`s rights around the world are an important indicator of social prosperity. Contrary to what many may think the issue of women`s rights is not only an issue in third-world countries. Women face different types of problems all over the world from the wealthiest countries to the poorest. Poor or nonexistent legal provisions create huge barriers not only to poor women, women of color, and immigrant women, but also for women in so-called `modern societies`. In the European Union the principle of equal treatment of women and men was first adopted by the European Community in 1957 in Article 141 (ex Article 119) of the Treaty of Rome, as the right of `equal pay for equal work`. This provision, although of limited scope, evolved progressively. From 1975 onwards, the EU has issued several directives on sex discrimination and the European Court of Justice has given a large number of judgments on sex discrimination cases. The Lisbon Treaty, which recently entered into force, reaffirms the principle of equality between women and men and includes it in the values and objectives of the Union. Despite the significant progress made thanks to equal treatment legislation and the social dialogue, Europe still faces considerable challenges, particularly as regards the pay gap, labour market segregation and the reconciliation of professional and private life. There are legal gaps still to be closed and new problems that demand new rights and new legal provisions. (...)

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