Selected Child Labor Measures Adopted by Governments
| Ratified Convention 138 5/11/2004 |
X |
| Ratified Convention 182 8/16/2001 |
X |
| ILO-IPEC Member |
X |
| National Plan for Children |
|
| National Child Labor Action Plan |
X |
| Sector Action Plan (Trafficking and Commercial Sexual Exploitation) |
X |
Incidence and Nature of Child Labor
The ILO estimated that 10.8 percent of children ages 10 to 14 years in Thailand were working in 2002.[3871] Children work in the agriculture, construction, manufacturing, commerce, service, and fishing sectors.[3872] Children also work in domestic service.[3873] Children are likewise involved in the trafficking of drugs in Thailand,[3874] and are victims of commercial sexual exploitation, including child pornography.[3875] Thailand is a source, transit and destination country for trafficking in persons, including children, for both labor and commercial sexual exploitation.[3876] Trafficking is exacerbated by sex tourism.[3877] Domestic NGOs report that girls ages 12 to 18 are trafficked from Burma, China, and Laos for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation.[3878] Children are also trafficked into Thailand from Cambodia and Burma to work as beggars, as domestic workers[3879], in sweatshops, and in commercial sexual exploitation.[3880] Internal trafficking of children, especially of members of northern Thailand’s stateless ethnic tribes, also occurs.[3881]
The National Education Act of 1999 provides for a compulsory education period of 9 years, beginning at age 7,[3882] and free schooling for 12 years.[3883] In 2001, the gross primary enrollment rate was 97.7 percent. The net primary enrollment rate for the same year was 86.3 percent, with 85.1 percent of girls enrolled compared to 87.5 percent of boys.[3884] Gross and net enrollment ratios are based on the number of students formally registered in primary school and therefore do not necessarily reflect actual school attendance. Recent primary school attendance statistics are not available for Thailand.
Child Labor Laws and Enforcement
Chapter Four of Thailand’s Labor Protection Act of 1998 sets the minimum age for employment at 15 years. Employers are required to notify labor inspectors if children under age 18 are hired, and the law permits children ages 15 to 18 to work only between the hours of 4 p.m. and 10 p.m. with written permission from the Director-General or a person assigned by the Director-General.[3885] Children under age 18 may not be employed in hazardous work, which is defined by the law to include any work involving metalwork, hazardous chemicals, poisonous materials, radiation, harmful temperatures or noise levels, exposure to toxic micro-organisms, the operation of heavy equipment, and work underground or underwater. The maximum penalty for violation of the child labor sections of the Labor Protection Act is one year of imprisonment and fines of 200,000 baht (USD 4,783).[3886]
The 1998 Labor Protection Act does not apply to the agricultural and informal sectors (including domestic household) work.[3887] However, Section 22 of the Act allows for protection in these sectors as prescribed through separate ministerial regulations, and in early 2004, the Ministry of Labor issued regulations to increase protections for child workers in informal sector work.[3888] On March 30, 2004, the Child Protection Act came into force. The Act guarantees the rights of all children “in Thailand” or “of all nationalities” to be protected by the State against violence and unfair treatment.[3889] Violations, such as forcing children to become beggars, work in dangerous conditions, or to perform obscene acts all carry penalties of three months imprisonment or a fine of 30,000 baht (USD 731), or both.[3890]
The Prostitution Prevention and Suppression Act of 1996 prohibits all forms of prostitution and provides specific penalties for cases involving children under the age of 18.[3891] Fines and terms of imprisonment under the law are based on the age of the child involved, with more severe terms established for prostitution involving children under the age of 16. For example, the prostitution of children ages 16 to 18 are subject to jail terms of up to 15 years and maximum fines of 300,000 baht (USD 491 to 7,174), while the penalties are nearly twice as much for those pimping and patronizing children ages 15 and under. Under Section 12, government officials who compel others to engage in commercial sexual exploitation face penalties of 15 to 20 years of imprisonment and/or substantial fines ranging between 300,000 and 400,000 baht (USD 7,174 to 9,565).[3892] The Prevention and Suppression of Trafficking in Women and Children Act of 1997 expands the list of activities that can be sanctioned under the law, extends legal protection to victims from other countries, and provides for basic protection for victims.[3893] The Penal Code Amendment Act of 1997 also establishes penalties for traffickers of children under the age of 18, regardless of the victim’s nationality.[3894] The Criminal Procedure Amendment Act of 1999 provides protection for child victims in the course of testifying in cases of sexual exploitation.[3895]
Child labor laws are enforced by four government agencies: the Royal Thai Police, the Office of the Attorney General, the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Labor. Both periodic and complaint-driven labor inspections are conducted, and inspecting officers have the right to remove child workers from businesses and place them in government custody before court decisions on the cases. [3896] In general, the labor inspection system tends to be more reactive than proactive, with inspectors usually responding to public complaints or newspaper reports, according to the U.S. Department of State.[3897] A new series of Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) in 2003 between government agencies and domestic NGOs has provided new guidelines for the treatment of trafficked persons. In line with these guidelines, police will be trained to treat them as victims of trafficking rather than as illegal immigrant workers, and victims are to become the responsibility of the Public Welfare Department instead of being deported.[3898]
Current Government Policies and Programs to Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child Labor
In 2004, the Royal Thai Government folded a National Policy and Plan of Action for the Prevention and Eradication of the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children into a larger National Plan on Trafficking of Women and Children.[3899] Thailand also ratified ILO Convention 138 on Minimum Age for Admission to Employment on May 11, 2004.[3900]
The government maintains a child labor reporting hotline, facilitates the participation of communities in anti-child labor activities, and has initiated a public awareness campaign that includes information about child labor laws.[3901] The Department of Social Development and Welfare (DSDW) has established shelters for street children[3902] and provides child victims legal assistance, including counseling and rehabilitation services.[3903] The Department also provides vocational training to improve children’s skills and prevent them from entering work prematurely.[3904] In each province, the government has established “Women and Children Labor Assistance Centers” to oversee provincial concerns on child labor and included the issue in school curricula.[3905]
The government collaborates on trafficking in persons issues with governments of neighboring countries, NGOs, and international organizations to raise awareness, provide shelters and social services, and assist in the repatriation of victims.[3906] The DSDW and IOM cooperate in assisting foreign trafficking victims in Thailand,[3907] and the DSDW works with its counterpart agencies in both Laos and Cambodia to repatriate their nationals.[3908]
Thailand is included in an ILO-IPEC Sub-Regional Project funded by the United Kingdom through April 2008 to combat trafficking of women and children for exploitive labor in the Mekong sub-region[3909] and a USDOL-funded project to combat the involvement of children in the drug trade.[3910] Thailand cooperates as part of a project between ASEAN and AUSAID on the elimination of trafficking in women and children in Southeast Asia and Yunnan Province.[3911]
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