Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2013, published 103rd ILC session (2014)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Kyrgyzstan (Ratification: 1992)

Article 1 of the Convention and Part V of the report form. National policy and application of the Convention in practice. The Committee previously noted that a national child labour survey (CLS) was planned to be conducted in Kyrgyzstan with the support of ILO–IPEC–SIMPOC, which was expected to be finalized and presented by the end of 2007.

The Committee notes that the CLS was duly completed and disseminated in 2007. According to the CLS estimates, 672,000 of the 1,467,000 children aged 5–17 years in Kyrgyzstan (45.8 per cent) were economically active. The prevalence of employment among children increases with age: from 32.7 per cent of children aged 5–11 years; to 55 per cent of children aged 12–14 years; and 62.3 per cent of children aged 15–17 years.

The Committee notes that, in the framework of the ILO–IPEC project entitled “Combating Child Labour in Central Asia – Commitment becomes Action” (PROACT CAR Phase III), which aims to contribute to the prevention and elimination of the worst forms of child labour in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, a wide array of actions have been undertaken to combat child labour, including its worst forms, in Kyrgyzstan. These include the adoption of the Code on Children of 31 May 2012, section 14 of which bans the use of child labour; a mapping, in 2012, of the legislation and policies on child labour and youth employment in Kyrgyzstan, which aims to identify the link between the elimination of child labour and the promotion of youth employment; the finalization of the Guidelines on Child Labour Monitoring in Kyrgyzstan; as well as a number of action programmes to establish child labour free zones and to establish child labour monitoring systems in various regions of the country. The Committee strongly encourages the Government to pursue its efforts towards the progressive elimination of child labour through the ILO–IPEC PROACT CAR Phase III project and to provide information on the results achieved, particularly with respect to reducing the number of children working under the minimum age (16 years) and in hazardous work.

Article 2(1) and Part III of the report form. Scope of application and labour inspection. The Committee previously noted the Government’s information that the Attorney-General of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan and the state labour inspectorate are responsible for the application and enforcement of labour legislation. It noted that the minimum age provisions applied to work carried out at home or in a business, domestic work, hired work, commercial agriculture, and family and subsistence agriculture. However, it noted the statement in a 2006 report of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (now the International Trade Union Confederation) that many children were working in family enterprises, domestic services, agriculture (tobacco, cotton, rice), cattle breeding, gasoline sales, car washing, shoe cleaning, selling products at the roadsides, and retail sales of tobacco and alcohol. The Committee also noted the Government’s information that child labour was widespread in farms, private enterprises, individual business activities and self-employment.

The Committee notes the Government’s information that the Labour Code, by virtue of its section 18, applies to the parties involved in contractual labour relations, that is the worker and the employer. It notes, however, that according to the CLS, the overwhelming majority of child labourers (96 per cent) work in agriculture or home production, and in terms of work status, the overwhelming majority (95 per cent) are unpaid family workers. The Committee requests the Government to take immediate measures to ensure that self-employed children, children in the informal economy and children working on family farms benefit from the protection laid down in the Convention. In this regard, it once again requests the Government to indicate any measures adopted or envisaged to strengthen the labour inspection, particularly in the abovementioned sectors. Lastly, the Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which the state labour inspectorate and the Attorney-General enforce specific legislative provisions giving effect to the Convention.

Article 7. Light work. The Committee previously noted that, according to section 18 of the Labour Code, pupils who have reached the age of 14 years may conclude an employment contract with the written consent of their parents, guardians or trustees to perform light work outside school hours, provided that it does not harm their health and does not interfere with their education. The Committee noted that according to sections 91 and 95 of the Labour Code, the working hours for workers aged 14–16 years shall not exceed 24 hours per week, and daily working hours shall not exceed five hours. The Committee therefore requested the Government to indicate the manner in which the attendance at school of children working five hours per day was ensured. It also requested the Government to indicate the activities in which light work by children aged 14–16 years may be permitted.

The Committee notes the information in the 2007 CLS according to which, despite the high employment ratio among children, school attendance is also very high, with 98.9 per cent of children aged 7–14 years and 89.2 per cent of children aged 15–17 years attending school. However, children in employment are also found to have slightly lower school-attendance rates than non-working children. Among non-working children aged 7–17 years, the school attendance rate is estimated to be 97.4 per cent, compared to 94.5 per cent among working children aged 7–17 years, with the difference mainly resulting from the lower school attendance of older working children. The Committee requests the Government to take immediate measures to ensure that children under 14 years of age are not engaged in work or employment. With regard to children over 14 years of age engaged in light work, the Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that their school attendance is not prejudiced. The Committee also once again requests the Government to indicate the activities in which light work by children aged 14–16 years may be permitted. If these activities are not yet determined by the law, the Committee urges the Government to take the necessary measures to adopt a list of types of light work activities which are permitted to children over 14 years of age.

The Committee is raising other points in a request addressed directly to the Government.