Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2004, published 93rd ILC session (2005)

Minimum Age (Underground Work) Convention, 1965 (No. 123) - Mongolia (Ratification: 1981)

The Committee notes with interest the Labour Code of 1999 and the Order of the Minister of Health and Social Welfare establishing the lists of the jobs prohibited for women and young persons (No. A/204 of 1999).

Article 2 of the Convention. When ratifying the Convention, Mongolia specified the age of 18 as the minimum age for admission to underground work. The Committee notes that under section 86 of the Labour Code, the minimum age for admission to employment in all underground work is 18 years. It also notes that section 109.4 of the Labour Code prohibits the employment of a minor in work which would be prejudicial to her or his intellectual development and health. Furthermore, Appendix 1 to Order No. A/204 of 1999 establishes the list of jobs prohibited for minors, which includes underground work. However, the Committee observes that neither the Labour Code nor Order No. A/204 of 1999 contain a definition of the term "minor". The Committee also notes the information provided by the Government in its report that informal work is on the increase in the following activities: the manual extraction of gold, coal and other minerals. Accordingly, with a view to protecting the health of young persons employed in the informal mining sector, the Parliament is currently examining a Bill respecting the informal mining sector. The Committee notes that section 16 of this Bill sets forth the prohibition of the employment of young persons under 18 years of age in the manual extraction of minerals. The Committee requests the Government to provide information concerning the adoption of this Bill, and to indicate the definition of the term "minor" in the abovementioned Order No. A/204.

Part IV of the report form. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that old mines were being used again by private economic entities. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government that, in the same way as employers’ and workers’ organizations, it pays attention to the issue of the employment of young persons in underground work. It also notes the projects implemented by the Government and ILO/IPEC to provide educational alternatives and rehabilitation for working children engaged in hazardous work in the Nalaikh mines. It notes that, according to the studies carried out, 238 children of an average age of 14 years were working in coal mines in Tuv Province, of whom 188 were boys. Furthermore, according to a study entitled: "Child labour in gold mines of Mongolia", 1,871 children were working in opencast mines in 2002. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice, in accordance with Part IV of the report form.