International Labour Organisation conventions relate to the worst forms of child labour, and admission of age to employment

In a historic move, India on Tuesday ratified two core Conventions of International Labour Organisation (ILO) on child labour – a global commitment to end the worst form of child labour and to ensure minimum basic education for children.

Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya handed over the Instruments of Ratification to the ILO in Geneva as a part of the ceremony.

“It is a historic moment for India as we are going to take another giant step to affirm our commitment for a child labour-free India by ratifying the two Core Conventions of International Labour Organization (ILO), Convention 138 regarding admission of age to employment and Convention 182 regarding worst forms of child labour,” Mr. Dattatreya said on the sidelines of the International Labour Conference 2017 in Geneva.

The Central government had enacted a new law - Child labour (Prohibition and Prevention) Amendment Act, 2016 – banning employment of children below 14 years of age in all occupations and processes. It further prohibits employment of adolescents (14-18 years of age) in hazardous occupations. However, children were allowed to "help" families in running their domestic enterprises only after school hours.

As per the Census 2011, India has over four million working children in the age group of 5-14. Child labour in urban areas in the country has increased by 53 per cent over 2001-2011. According to UNICEF, a child is involved in child labour if he or she is between 5 and 11 years, does at least one hour of economic activity, or at least 28 hours of domestic work in a week. And in case of children aged between 12 and 14, 14 hours of economic activity or at least 42 hours of economic activity and domestic work per week is considered child labour. Elimination of child labour is one of the four core labour standards of the International Labour Organisation and is incorporated in the definition of the ILO's fundamental principles. India has passed a number of laws on child labour since Independence. Article 24 of the Constitution prohibits employment of children below the age of 14 in factories, mines, and other hazardous employment. Photo: M. Periasamy Article 21A and Article 45 promise to provide free and compulsory education to all children between the ages of 6 and 14. In 2009, India passed the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act (RTE) The government enacted the Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act in 1986 based on the recommendations of the Gurupadaswamy Committee. Amendments were made in 2006 and 2008, but the Act itself is fraught with flaws, experts say. Experts say the law has proved to be weak and ineffective in curbing child labour. It is in contradiction with Article 21-A of the Constitution and the RTE Act. They also say the Act does not regulate adolescent labour as mandated by ILO Conventions 138 and 182. The government needs to comprehensively overhaul it, focusing on the rehabilitation of children rescued from traumatic working conditions, experts feel.

The new law linked the age of employment for children to the age of compulsory education under Right to Education Act (RTE), 2009.

“From today, Convention 182 will cover more than 99 percent of the world’s children and the coverage of Convention 138 will leap from approximately 60 percent to almost 80 percent,” ILO Director General Guy Ryder said at the Geneva event.

With ratification of the two core ILO conventions, India has ratified six out of eight core ILO conventions. Four other conventions were related to abolition of forced labour, equal remuneration and no discrimination between men and women in employment and occupation.

Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi had told The Hindu last week that the Central government’s move to ratify ILO Conventions on child labour will ensure compliance of the government’s new law.

“Countries which ratify any of the ILO conventions have to go through a periodical reporting system every four years. So the government has to prove they are making progress,” Mr. Satyarthi had said.