A/HRC/34/57 consultation between trade unions, employer organizations and the Government at country level. Deference should be shown if these organizations voice significant concerns, in particular regarding States’ international obligations in the area of human rights and labour standards. These consultations should occur at an early stage and substantiated objections by the competent organization should lead to the reconsideration and redesign of the relevant policy proposal. F. Strengthen national and international mechanisms providing effective remedies against labour rights violations 68. Political mobilization and strategic litigation can serve as a local corrective to austerity-related labour market reforms that infringe workers’ rights. Research suggests that international financial institutions are more receptive to political pressure by domestic trade unions than is often thought and are likely to make concessions on labour market issues in the face of significant protest. 94 Similarly, domestic courts, especially — but not only — constitutional courts, have been successfully used in several countries to challenge austerity measures. Also, regional human rights mechanism and courts are important for ensuring that economic reform programmes remain compatible with labour rights. In the same vein, treaty bodies, especially those vested with complaint mechanism, can provide an additional safeguard for labour rights contained in international human rights instruments. A step in this regard would be for States to ratify the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights so as to enable individuals to submit complaints once domestic remedies have been exhausted. 94 22 See Teri L. Caraway, Stephanie J. Richard and Mark S. Anner, “International negotiations and domestic politics: the case of IMF labor market conditionality”, International Organization, vol. 66, No. 1 (2012), pp. 53-54.