Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1990, published 77th ILC session (1990)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Iraq (Ratification: 1985)

I. The Committee notes that the Government's report does not contain information in reply to its previous comments which refer to the following points:

1. Application of the Convention to work or employment performed outside an employment relationship. The Committee notes that, under section 8 of the Labour Code, No. 71 of 1987, the provisions of the Code (including those concerning young persons) are applicable to all workers employed in the private, joint and co-operative sectors and a worker is defined as a person who carries out work for a wage in the service of an employer. Since the Convention under Article 2, paragraph 1 applies to all types of work or employment, including work done by children and young persons outside an employment relationship or on their own account, the Committee requested the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to ensure the application of the Convention to young persons engaged in all types of employment or work done inside or outside an employment relationship.

2. Application of the Convention to family undertakings. The Committee notes that under section 96 of the above Labour Code, the provisions of Chapter V of the Code do not apply to young persons employed in a family undertaking under the authority and supervision of the husband, father, mother or brother. Since the Convention does not provide for any derogation as regards work performed in family undertakings, the Committee requested the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to extend the provisions which give effect to the Convention to the undertakings referred to in section 96. In this connection, the Committee has noted that the Government did not make use of Article 7 of the Convention, which authorises the employment of children between 13 and 15 years of age on light work, subject to certain conditions. The Government may therefore wish to make use of that Article in respect of undertakings referred to in section 96 of the Labour Code.

3. The Committee has also requested the Government to indicate whether Instruction No. 19 of 1987, adopted in pursuance of section 90 of the Labour Code concerning the prohibition to employ young persons under 18 years to certain types of work likely to jeopardise their health and safety, applies to the undertakings referred to in section 96.

The Committee hopes that the next report will contain the information requested and indicate the measures taken to ensure the full application of the Convention on the points mentioned above.

II. The Committee has also noted resolution No. 686 of 30 October 1989 under which "a juvenile can be employed for purposes of preparing, training and developing a profession, being not restricted to a definite age". Since under Article 6 of the Convention the only exception authorised in relation to vocational training concerns work done by children or young persons in schools for general, vocational or technical education or in other training institutions or work done by persons, at least 14 years of age in undertakings, when such work is carried out in accordance with conditions prescribed by the competent authority and after consultation with the employers' and workers' organisations concerned, the Committee requests the Government to indicate the way in which the above resolution is applied in practice and the measures taken to prohibit such work by persons under the age of 14 years in undertakings.