Ending child labour in domestic work<\/a><\/em>, released to coincide with the Day, of the 10.5 million underage workers, an estimated 6.5 million are child labourers aged between five and 14 years of age. More than 71 per cent are girls, some of whom work as a result of forced labour and trafficking.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
Child labourers who work in the homes of a third party or employer, carry out tasks such as cleaning, ironing, cooking, gardening, collecting water, looking after other children and caring for the elderly.<\/p>\n
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ILO reports that these children are vulnerable to physical, psychological and sexual violence and abusive working conditions, they are often isolated from their families, hidden from the public eye and become highly dependent on their employers. Many might end up being commercially sexually exploited.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe situation of many child domestic workers not only constitutes a serious violation of child rights, but remains an obstacle to the achievement of many national and international development objectives,\u201d said Constance Thomas, Director of the ILO\u2019s International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC).<\/p>\n
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In addition to the children working under the legal age in their countries, ILO estimates that an additional 5 million children \u2013 defined as people under the age of 18 \u2013 are involved in paid or unpaid domestic work in the home of a third party or employer.<\/p>\n
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The relationship between the child and the employing family is often ambiguous, according to the report, \u201cthe child is working, but is not considered a worker, and; although the child lives in a family setting, she or he is not treated like a family member.\u201d<\/p>\n
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One of the people interviewed for the report, 13-year-old Nad\u00e8ge, a child domestic worker in Cotonou, Benin, described the blurred relationship as follows: \u201cWhen you are placed as a domestic in someone else\u2019s home, an employer will not buy shoes for you. But if the employer decides to buy shoes for you, it means that you are part of the family.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The familial and legal \u201ccare vacuum\u201d created by this situation works against the interests of the child, ILO noted, by disguising an arrangement that might entail cruel working conditions and often masking violence and abuse.<\/p>\n
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The UN agency called on its Member States today to take appropriate measures to provide decent working conditions to adolescents of legal working age employed in domestic work.<\/p>\n
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This includes limiting their hours of work, prohibiting night work; restricting work that is excessively demanding, and taking measures to ensure effective protection against all forms of abuse, harassment and violence.<\/p>\n
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\u201cWe urge ILO member States to ratify and ensure effective implementation of the ILO\u2019s Conventions on child labour and on domestic work,\u201d Mr. Ryder said highlighting Convention No. 189 and Recommendation No. 201.<\/p>\n
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Convention No. 189 also states that the minimum age for domestic workers should be consistent with the provisions of the ILO\u2019s child labour treaties. These require that children should not work below the legal minimum age for employment or work, and that young workers above the minimum age should be employed in safe conditions.<\/p>\n
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In addition, the Convention identifies domestic work as an important source of employment, especially for millions of women.<\/p>\n
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\u201cDomestic workers of all ages are increasingly performing a vital task in many economies. We need to ensure a new respect for their rights and to empower domestic workers and their representative organisations,\u201d said Mr. Thomas.<\/p>\n
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The UN report also presses for Governments to ratify and implement ILO Convention 138, concerning the minimum age for admission to employment and ILO Convention 182, on the worst forms of child labour.<\/p>\n
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Earlier this month, ILO released its World Report on Child Labour, estimating that some 215 million children worldwide work.<\/p>\n
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As part of Government efforts to fight child labour, the report stressed that the extension of social protection, in line with the UN agency\u2019s Recommendation on social protection floors delineated in 2011, should form a key part of national strategies to tackle the scourge.<\/p>\n
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In particular, the floors would guarantee basic income in the form of social transfers in cash or kind, such as pensions, child benefits, employment guarantees and services for the unemployed and working poor, while providing universal access to essential affordable social services in health, water and sanitation, education, food, housing, and other services defined according to national priorities.<\/p>\n
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For its part, the UN Children\u2019s Fund ( UNICEF) ) also drew attention to the millions of children engaged in some form of hazardous or exploitative work, usually at the expense of their health and education, and overall wellbeing and development.<\/p>\n
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In a press release, the agency also notes that there are many children doing work unsuitable for anyone under 18. In the worst forms of child labour, children are exposed to health hazards and to physical danger, their development is threatened, and they are subjected to exploitation.<\/p>\n
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\u201cWe understand that many children work to support their families,\u201d said Susan Bissell, UNICEF\u2019s global head of child protection. \u201cHowever when children are forced into the most dangerous forms of labour, when they then miss school, when they are at risk and their health and well-being are impaired, this is unacceptable.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u201cActions must be taken to address this situation, including preventing it from happening in the first place,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
UNICEF says the most lasting work must be carried out at the level of Governments. The organization supports the ILO Convention 189 on domestic workers, adopted in 2011, which particularly targets women and girls in domestic service, and congratulated Uruguay, Philippines and Mauritius for being the first countries to ratify the Convention. Another 20 countries have started national dialogues on the issue of domestic work around the process of adoption of the ILO Convention.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Source:\u00a0http:\/\/www.un.org<\/a><\/p>\n\n
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