Selected Child Labor Measures Adopted by Governments
| Ratified Convention 138 |
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| Ratified Convention 182 |
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| ILO-IPEC Member |
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| National Plan for Children |
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| National Child Labor Action Plan |
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| Sector Action Plan |
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Incidence and Nature of Child Labor
The ILO estimated that 21.8 percent of children ages 10 to 14 years in Haiti were working in 2002.[1937] In general, due to high unemployment and job competition, there is very little child labor in the formal industrial sector. Children are known to work on family farms and in the informal sector in order to supplement their parents’ income. A common form of exploitive child labor in Haiti is the traditional practice of trafficking children from poor, rural areas to cities to work as domestic servants for more affluent urban families.[1938] A 2002 survey by the Fafo Institute for Applied Social Sciences estimated that 173,000, or 8.2 percent of children ages 5 to 17 years, were child domestic workers.[1939] Many domestic workers, known as restaveks, work without compensation, reach the age of 15 to 17 years without ever having attended school,[1940] are forced to work long hours under harsh conditions, and are subject to mistreatment, including sexual abuse.[1941]
The armed uprising that began in 2004 introduced new hazards for children working in the streets or as child domestics.[1942] Armed gangs in 10 of Haiti’s 31 zones have recruited children for participation in the conflict.[1943] During the worst of the crisis, some schools closed for several months. In major cities, students have reported receiving death threats intended to prevent them from attending school. In addition, some families have been displaced.[1944]
An estimated 2,500 to 3,000 Haitian children are trafficked annually to the Dominican Republic.[1945] According to UNICEF, the civil unrest in 2004 has resulted in an increased number of children trafficked to the Dominican Republic to work as beggars or prostitutes.[1946]
Estimates on the number of street children in Haiti vary from 5,000 to 10,000, according to studies by UNICEF and Save the Children/Canada, respectively.[1947] There are reported incidents of commercial sexual exploitation of children.[1948]
According to the Constitution, primary school is free and compulsory.[1949] Education is required from the age of 6 to 15 years.[1950] Recent statistics on primary school enrollment in Haiti are unavailable.[1951] In 2000, the gross primary attendance rate was 122.4 percent and the net primary attendance rate was 54.4 percent.[1952] However, according to UNICEF, in 1999 almost two-thirds of Haitian children dropped out of school before completing the full 6 years of compulsory education, and over 1 million primary school children lacked access to schooling.[1953] School facilities are in disrepair, and overcrowding leaves 75 percent of students without a seat in the classroom.[1954] In addition, costs associated with school, including uniforms and books, prevent many children from attending.[1955]
Child Labor Laws and Enforcement
The Labor Code of 1984 sets the minimum age for employment at 15 years for work in industrial, agricultural, or commercial enterprises, and establishes 14 years as the minimum age for apprenticeships.[1956] The Labor Code also bans hazardous work for minors and night work in industrial jobs for children under 18 years. Additional provisions regulate the employment of children ages 15 to 18 years[1957] and prohibit forced labor.[1958] In 2003, the Government of Haiti passed legislation prohibiting trafficking and repealing the provisions of the Labor Code that permitted child domestic work.[1959] The Criminal Code prohibits the procurement of minors for the purposes of prostitution.[1960] Legislation also outlaws all forms of violence and inhumane treatment against children.[1961]
The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (MOLSA) is responsible for enforcing all child labor legislation, and the Institute for Welfare and Research (IBESR), which is part of the MOLSA, is charged with coordinating the implementation of child labor laws with other government agencies.[1962] However, child labor laws, particularly child domestic labor regulations, are not enforced.[1963] According to the government, the IBESR lacks the resources to adequately monitor the living conditions of child domestic workers, or to enforce protective measures on their behalf.[1964]
Current Government Policies and Programs to Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child Labor
Following the end of the Aristide regime in February 2004, an interim government was established. Insufficient time has passed to evaluate the interim government’s policies and programs.[1965] The previous Government of Haiti acknowledged the problem of internal trafficking for domestic labor, and devoted some of its social welfare budget to combat trafficking in children.[1966] The MOLSA also planned a series of public seminars to raise awareness on child domestic labor, in coordination with the IBESR, the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, and the Ministry of Education.[1967]
In May 2003, the previous government formed a 20 person police unit to monitor cases of suspected trafficking along the border and to rescue trafficking victims.[1968]
The previous government took steps to promote access to education by offering a 70 percent subsidy to cover educational supplies and calling on families who employ child domestics to release their workers during the afternoon so they can attend school.[1969] Regional government institutions and the Ministry of National Education, Youth and Sports are working with USAID-funded NGOs implementing the “Education 2004” initiative, which aims to improve the quality of teaching in disadvantaged schools and offer bilingual interactive radio instruction through radio stations across the country.[1970]
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