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Child Labour

“ Are you not risking the greatest of our possessions? For children are your riches, and upon their training for well or ill depends the whole order of their father's house…”
– Socrates –

Definition
A child is a person below the age of 18 (The South African Constitution of 1996, section 28(3)). And, based on ILO recommendations, the 1998 South African Child Labour Action Programme states that: “Child labour is …work done by children under 18 which is exploitative, hazardous or otherwise inappropriate for their age, detrimental to their schooling, or social, physical, mental sp iritual, or moral development.”

Global Trends

A 2002 estimate by the International Labour Organization (ILO), in its publication “Every Child Counts: New Global Estimates of Child Labour”, indicates that in 2000 some 352 million children aged 5 to 17 were engaged in some form of economic activity, including 211 million in the 5 -14 age group. The Asia-Pacific region had the largest number of child workers in the 5 - 14 age category at 127.3 million, followed by Sub-Saharan Africa with 48 million, and Latin America and the Caribbean with 17.4 million. The report is available online at: www.ilo.org/public/english/standards/ipec/simpoc/others/globalest.pdf

The International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC)'s research, a 2000 global study, acknowledged an estimated:

  • 246 million children aged 5 to 17 engaged in child labour, of which 186 million were below the age of 15 and 110 million below the age of 12
  • 171 million child labourers working in hazardous situations or conditions of which 111 million children were below 15 years of age;
  • around 8.4 million children involved in the unconditional worst forms of child labour listed in ILO Convention 182, Article 3, including forced and bonded labour (5.7 million), prostitution and pornography (1.8 million), illicit activities (0.6 million), and armed conflict (0.3 million);
  • at least 1.2 million of child labourers were also victims of trafficking.

Source: http://www.ilo.org/public/english/standards/ipec/about/factsheet/index.htm

International Legal Instruments

Child labour is an issue of such paramount importance that it has attracted global attention. As an indication of this, we find many international conventions and recommendations dealing with child labour. The following are accessible from: http://www.ilo.org/ilolex/english/index.htm

  • ILO Minimum Age Convention (C138), 1973 – maintains that children should not engage in economic work before they reach the age of 15, or unless they are over 12 and the work is light and unlikely to be harmful to their health, development and schooling. A minimum age of 18 should operate in cases where the work is likely to be a threat to the health, safety or morals of the children.
  • ILO Minimum Age Recommendation (R146) – is a recommendation based on the ILO Minimum Age Convention.
  • ILO Convention on the Worst Forms of Child Labour (C182), 1999 – This requires ratifying governments to take measures to effect the immediate abolition of the ‘worst forms of child labour', which include slavery, child prostitution, using a child for illegal activities, and work which by its nature or the circumstances is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children (‘hazardous work'), which could be specific to a country.
  • ILO Recommendation on the Worst Forms of Child Labour (R190), 1999 – is a recommendation based on the worst forms of child labour Convention mentioned above.
  • UN Convention on the Rights of the Child , 1990 – has provisions that address the issue of protection of children from exploitative labour practices.
    For more information: http://www.unicef.org.sowc97/download/fctsgrfs.pdf

    African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, 1990 – provides that children should be protected from economic exploitation, but also acknowledges that children have responsibilities towards their families and the international community. For more information: http://www.africa-union.org

National Legal Instruments

In South Africa, there are some legal arrangements that deal with child labour:

  • The South African Constitution of 1996 – Sec 28 of the 1996 SA Constitution specifically addresses the rights of children including their rights to be protected against exploitative labour practices. Available online at: http://www.polity.org.za/html/govdocs/constitution/saconst.html?rebookmark=1
  • Basic Conditions of Employment Act, 1997 – Chapter 6 specifically addresses the prohibition of employment of children and forced labour. For more details: www.labour.gov.za
  • Child Care Act 74 of 1983, as amended – has the provision that ‘no person may employ or provide work to any child under the age of 15 years.' (Section 52A) . Available online at: http://www.co.za/child_care/
  • South African Schools Act 84 of 1996 – Requires parents to ensure that their children attend school from the first day of the year that they turn 7 until the last day of the year in which they turn 15 or complete the ninth grade, whichever comes first. Available online at: http://www.acts.co.za/ed_sasa/index.htm

Children's Bill (Drafted January 2003) – Drawn to replace the 1983 Child Care Act. Chapter 4 addresses Children's Rights and section 20 is on Economic Exploitation. Chapter 16 addresses Children in Especially Difficult Circumstances (including HIV/AIDS, malnutrition, exploitative labour practices, commercial exploitation, etc.). Section 240 specifically addresses issues related to children subject to exploitative labour practices, while section 241 deals with provincial monitoring of the same. Child labour is defined in section 242 (which is different from that of the BCEA definition. The Draft Children's Bill definition of child labour is broader and focuses more on remuneration and payment as compared with the BCEA which focuses more on the age of the child and the exploitative and hazardous nature of child labour). Chapter 21 is on trafficking of children and section 317 prohibits this act.

Child Labour in South Africa

The basis for any analyses in this field has been the “Survey of Activities of Young People in South Africa (SAYP).” This survey was commissioned by the ILO/Department of Labour and was conducted by Statistics South Africa (StatsSA). It was administered between June and early July of 1999 to examine the activities of children between the ages of 5 and 17 in South Africa. This survey remains an indicator and the basic reference point for child labour-related analyses.

In short, the SAYP used three indicators to analyse child labour. These were: the type of activity , hours engaged in these activities , and working condition that is dangerous or hazardous .

Provincially, the Eastern Cape had the highest incidence of child labour, around 60%, while Gauteng had 12%. The most common activity by young people was fetching wood and/or water, while agriculture accounted for about 60% of the work that children were engaged in. Girls had more responsibilities to shoulder, except in helping in farming activities. The most common reason for the children to work was ‘duty to help family'. In terms of exposure to hazardous working conditions, boys were notably more vulnerable than girls.

Almost 1.4% of the 13.4 million children aged 5 -17 in South Africa in 1999 were involved in commercial agriculture, as per the Survey. This Survey was not exhaustive as it missed some key elements of child labour like child prostitution. Yet it concluded that child labour, in its exploitative sense, was rare in South Africa. Given the limited data available, this may be a premature conclusion (cf. Nsibriwa 2000:7*).

* Nsibriwa, M.S. 2000. Realizing the Right of Children in South Africa to be Protected Against Exploitative Child Labou r. LLM Thesis, Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria.

The full Survey report and related publications are available from the Department of Labour's web page online at: www.labour.gov.za .

HIV/AIDS and Child Labour

The HIV/AIDS pandemic aggravates the challenge of reducing child labour (ILO 2002), due to various factors: increased number of vulnerable children, increased pressure on households and children, increased demands on public and private services, increased burden on community, and increased risk that susceptible children will engage in survival sex, which implies a higher risk of HIV infection.

In South Africa the issue of HIV/AIDS is alarming as it is one of the most serious cases in the world and is worsening. This disease has strong links with and impact on child labour. In South Africa, significant impact is felt in the KwaZulu Natal and Mpumalanga provinces, where many children have lost parents to the disease. A rapid assessment analysis commissioned and financed by the ILO/IPEC (Mturi and Nzimande/ILO 2003), which focused on the KwaZulu Natal province concluded that a strong linkage existed between HIV/AIDS and child labour. The methods used were focus group discussions and in-depth interviews.

The report can be accessed from: http://www.ilo.org/public/english/standards/ipec/publ/download/hiv6_subsahara_en.pdf

Child Labour and Tourism

  • In 1995, the ILO published “ In the Twilight Zone: Child Workers in the Hotel, Tourism and Catering Industry ”. This report was mainly based on four case studies in the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Mexico and Kenya. According to the 1995 estimates, children and young people under 18 constitute 10 to 15 percent of the tourism industry's labour market, i.e. 13 to 19 million people.

  • A later publication by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation – “ Quick Money – Easy Money: A Report on Child Labour in Tourism ” authored by Christine Pluss in 1999 further examined the existence of child labour in tourism. This report is based on the information provided from consultations with more than 300 experts all over the world. The report noted a widespread tendency of child labour in tourism, which could be explained by growing poverty, lack of educational opportunities and growing economic pressure of globalisation. And that many children working in the tourism industry were more vulnerable to sexual exploitation. It is also noted that there has been a growing tendency towards younger people being employed even in the formal sector of tourism. Pluss identified lack of hard data/information of child labour in tourism; this is especially more problematic in country-level scale.

It is difficult to capture the exact state of child labour in the tourism industry, especially with regard to sex work, informal sector work and illegal employment as these areas tend not to be covered by statistical surveys.

  • ECPAT International has a project named “Preventing Child Sex Tourism”. This project stems from the ECPAT's initiative to campaign against child prostitution in Asian tourism. It works with the tourism and travel industry to raise awareness and to take practical measures against children being sexually abused. The project involves preparing awareness raising campaign materials, training personnel in the tourism industry, and research on child sex tourism. Find more at: http://www.ecpat.net/eng/Ecpat_inter/projects/sex_tourism/sex_tourism.asp#1

  • There is also a commitment by tourism organizations to end commercial exploitation of children. An example is the “Child and Travel Agents' Charter” that was adopted in 1995 and was signed by many members of the United Federation of Travel Agents' Associations (UFTAA). Find more at: http://www.world-tourism.org/protect_children/partners/uftaa-a.htm

  • The World Tourism Organization initiative, “Global Code of Ethics for Tourism” has provisions against the exploitation of children in the tourism industry. It is available at: http://www.world-tourism.org/projects/ethics/principles.html

  • With a growing tendency of ethical and social issues raised in the tourism industry, like the sexual exploitation of children, a need arises for a socially responsible travel and tourism guide or code; a need for the ‘development and promotion of child-wise tourism'. There is a Code of Conduct for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism, which was initiated at the international Expert Meeting held in Bad Oeynhausen, Germany, on September 28-29, 2000, where a group of individuals were elected in order to represent all groups of tourism stakeholders . In 1998 ECPAT Sweden initiated the development of a Tour Operators Code of Conduct against Child Sex Tourism for the Tourism Industry. The Code is a set of six criteria, originally developed by Scandinavian tour operators with the support of the Nordic Council of Ministers and the WTO, and the financing of the European Commission. See more at: http://www.ecpat.net/eng/Ecpat_inter/projects/sex_tourism/sex_tourism.asp and http://www.thecode.org/ .

  • “Child-wise tourism” – Accor , Thailand-based hotel, has taken a strong stand against the commercial exploitation of children through its partnership with ECPAT. It is involved in staff training, distributing of leaflets about the issues surrounding child prostitution, inserting them with tickets into travel document envelops, and awareness raising campaigns in all its hotels in Thailand. Some 2857 of 3611 staff at Accor's 18 hotels in Thailand have undergone training. Accor intends to extend its training and campaign and training programme to its hotels in other countries as well. Source: “'Child Wise Tourism' at Accor” Green Hotelier , Issue 29, October 2003, p.9.

Child Sex Tourism in South Africa

A research report on fieldwork carried out in Cape Town and Durban between 31 May and 9 June 1996. The study used research methods of observation and interviews with prostitute users and people working in the sex ‘industry'. The study concluded that the legacies of the apartheid regime, especially the massive inequalities of wealth, would mean that children of the poorest majority would still be trading their lives for their families' subsistence by engaging in sex commerce. The report can be found at: http://www.ecpat.net/eng/Ecpat_inter/projects/sex_tourism/sex_tourism.asp#1

Child Labour and FTTSA

The FTTSA trademark stands for “fairness” in tourism business. One aspect of this practice is respect for human rights, culture and environment. And one of the fundamental criteria for the FTTSA Trademark is the protection of children and young workers from exploitation.

The FTTSA assessment process gives due consideration to this criteria. Assessors consult domestic as well as international legal instruments to determine whether tourism businesses comply with the set expectations. These include the various national laws like the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, and international conventions like the ILO Minimum Age Convention (C138, 1973), amongst others.

More information on FTTSA principles and fundamentals can be found in our Trademark Users' Guide available on our web site: http://www.fairtourismsa.org.za/trademark/TrademarkUsersGuide26-02-03.pdf .

· Annotated Bibliography

A recent annotated bibliography on child labour is available online at the website of the International Labour Organization/International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (ILO/IPEC) at: http:// www.ilo.org/public/english/standards/ipec/publ/download/biblio_annotated_2003_en.pdf

· USEFUL LINKS

  • ECPAT : ECPAT is a network of international organizations and individuals working together for the elimination of child prostitution, child pornography and trafficking of children for sexual purposes. Its main focus is on ensuring that children are protected from all forms of sexual exploitation. Find more at: http://www.ecpat.net
  • Anti-Slavery International: Anti-Slavery International is an international human rights and charity organisation which addresses issues related to slavery and related abuses, including child labour. See more at: http://www.antislavery.org
  • IPEC: IPEC (International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour) is a programme of the International Labour Organization (ILO) that deals with issues related to the elimination of child labour. Find more at: http://www.ilo.org/childlabour
  • hild Labor Coalition (CLC): CLC is a US based national network that works to share information about child labor, to protect working minors, to stop child labour exploitation, to provide a floor for pubic education against child abuse and to promote desired initiatives. Find more at: http://www.stopchildlabor.org
  • Network Against Child Labour (NACL): NACL was established in 1990 and consists of 50 organizations actively working to eliminate child labour in South Africa. NACL is base in Johannesburg. Its mission is to ‘end the economic exploitation of children from their labour in whatever form and where it is found'. Contacts: P.O.Box 42440 Fordsburg South Africa 2033; Tel: (27-11) 8369942; Fax: (27-11) 8369944; email: corejhb@wn.apc.org .
  • Child Rights Information Network (CRIN): CRIN is a network that is committed to improving the well being of children. Find more at: http://www.crin.org/
  • ChildrenFirst: “ ChildrenFirst is committed to presenting African perspectives on the situation of children in South Africa and Africa.” Find more at: http://www.childrenfirst.org.za/
 
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