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East and Southern African Regional Symposium on Child Work/Labour 20-21 March 2014 Child labour a legal and human rights perspective Lemlem Fiseha

Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

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inShare 0 views Presentation from international meeting on children's work and child labour hosted by the Africa Child Policy Forum, Organisation for Social Science Research in Eastern and Southern Africa, and Young Lives in Addis Ababa, 20-21 March 2014

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Page 1: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

East and Southern African Regional Symposium on Child Work/Labour

20-21 March 2014

Child labour a legal and human rights perspective

Lemlem Fiseha

Page 2: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Outline

Definition of child labour

Child labour under international law

Child labour vs. human rights of children

Child labour under the laws of African

countries

Outstanding issues

Recommendations

Page 3: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Child Labour: what it is?

Employment of a child under the minimum age of

employment specified under national legislation in

accordance with international standard.

Employment of a child under the age of 18 years in

hazardous work that jeopardizes the physical, mental or

moral well-being of a child, either because of the nature

and the conditions in which the work is carried out.

Exploitation of children through slavery, trafficking, debt

bondage and other forms of forced labour, forced

recruitment of children for use in armed conflict,

prostitution and pornography, and illicit activities

Page 4: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Child Labour: What it is not

Child labour does not include activities such as helping out,

after school is over and schoolwork has been done, with

light household or garden chores, childcare or other light

work in a way that would not impede the child’s education

and full development. (ILO, 2002)

Page 5: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Child labour and international child rights laws

CRC

All appropriate measures shall be taken to ensure children

are protected from economic exploitation and any form of

hazardous labour. Age of employment shall be defined by

law

ACRWC

Children have the right

To be protected from economic exploitation and any form of

hazardous labour both in the formal and informal sector.

They have the duty

Subject to their age and ability, and such limitations as may

be contained in the Charter to serve his national community

by placing his physical and intellectual abilities at its

service.

Page 6: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Contd …

ILO Convention No 138 Concerning Minimum Age

for Admission to Employment, 1976

Ratified by all African countries except Liberia, South Sudan,

Somalia and Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic

Completion of compulsory schooling or 15 years: minimum

age of employment, developing economies may set it at 14

years

13 years: to perform light work not likely to be harmful to

the health or development of the child and will not

prejudice the child’s education or training

18 years: hazardous work

Page 7: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Contd…

ILO Convention on the Worst Forms of Child Labour (C 182)

Ratified by all African countries except South Sudan,

Eritrea, Somalia and Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic,

the Convention provides for the unconditional forms of

hazardous labour that are

Slavery, sale, trafficking, debt bondage, prostitution,

pornography, drug trafficking and work which, by its nature

or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely to

harm the health, safety or morals of children.

Page 8: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Child Labour vs. human rights of children

Child labour is clearly detrimental to individual children,

preventing them from enjoying their childhood, hampering

their development and sometimes causing lifelong physical or

psychological damage. Child labour exposes children to

Denial of their right to education

Denial of the right to leisure and cultural activities

Violence (physical, psychological and sexual) by the

employers and co workers

Physical injuries and other health risks at work

Meager wages or denial of wages

Forced and long hours of work

Page 9: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Contd…

Child labour violates the cardinal principles of children's’ rights

Best interest of the child: requires the full and effective

enjoyment of all the rights under the convention (General

Comment 14)

Survival and development: requires protection from all

forms of labour by abolishing the later and by regulating the

working environment and conditions in accordance with

international standards (General Comment 4, 15)

All actions and measures in the business sector should go

beyond the eradication of child labour and include the full

realization of all children’s rights (General Comment 16)

Page 10: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Laws of African countries on child labour

Minimum age of employment

AT THE AGE OF 14

(21 countries)

ABOVE THE AGE OF 14

(33 countries)

BELOW THE AGE

OF 14 FOR LIGHT

WORK

Angola, Benin, Botswana,

Cameroon, Central African

Republic, Chad, Cote

d’Ivoire, Equatorial

Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia,

Guinea Bissau, Malawi,

Mauritania, Namibia,

Niger, Nigeria, Sao Tome,

Sudan, Uganda and

Tanzania

Algeria, Burkina Faso, Burundi,

Cape Verde, Comoros, Congo

Brazzaville, Democratic Republic

of Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Gabon,

Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya,

Lesotho, Liberia, Libya,

Madagascar, Mali, Mauritius,

Morocco, Mozambique, Rwanda,

Senegal, Seychelles, Somalia,

South Africa, Swaziland , Togo,

Tunisia , Zambia, Zanzibar and

Zimbabwe

Burundi, Egypt, Kenya

Lesotho, Mauritania,

Somalia, South Sudan,

Uganda, Zambia

*Liberia allows

employment of children

below the specified age

of employment but the

age limit is not provided

Page 11: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Contd…

The minimum age for entry into employment should not be less than the

age of completion of compulsory schooling. Nevertheless,

Country Minimum age of

compulsory

education

Minimum age of

employment

Central African

Republic 16 14

Cote d’Ivoire 16 14

Morocco 18 15

Namibia 16 14

Niger 16 14

Seychelles 17 15

Uganda 13 12 (light work)

Zimbabwe 16 15

Page 12: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Contd…

Worst forms of child labour Sexual and economic exploitation is proscribed every

where in Africa

Sale, trafficking and abduction are prosecutable every

where in Africa

29 countries have separate laws on trafficking while 7

have draft laws

9 countries have separate legislation on sexual offences

and exploitation including prostitution and pornography

Page 13: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Outstanding concerns

127 million boys and 88 million girls are involved in child

labour with 74 million boys and 41 million girls in the worst

forms. This is attributable to

- Extreme child poverty including the very high incidence of

child headed households and lack of special protection

- Incomplete harmonization of laws and regulations (in

setting the minimum age, regulating hazardous labour and

eliminating exploitation )

- Lack of functioning labour inspection and enforcement

systems and capacities in place by the businesses and by

the state

Page 14: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Contd…

- The threshold of child labour is not clearly understood.

Countries in their report to the ACERWC clearly state the

need for clarity in the concept

Burkina Faso, 2006

It is not always easy to differentiate between child labor based on

exploitation and socializing labor or even labor which enables the child

to face up to the imperative of survival.

Cameroon, 2009

The notion of child labour, as defined by international conventions, does

not always fit in with the specific socio cultural circumstances of

Cameroon, which considers the work of children as a socializing activity

to prepare them for adulthood.

Page 15: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Recommendations

The concept of child labour as envisaged under the ACRWC

in the formal and informal sector needs clarification taking

the best interest of the child and the African context in to

account

States must ratify and harmonize their laws and allocate

the necessary resource to enforcement of laws and

strengthen labour inspection services

Child labour of children in religious and secular education

establishments and in family businesses and domestic

work shall be given due attention

Child right must be mainstreamed in investment plans,

policies, agreements and monitoring activities

Page 16: Child Labour: A Legal and Human Rights Perspective

Thank you!