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

Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81) - Egypt (Ratification: 1956)

Article 3(1) (a) and (b) of the Convention. Labour inspection and child labour. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government on the activities of the labour inspectorate in the area of child labour, which corresponds to a large extent to the information previously provided in the Government’s reports under the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138), and the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182). In this regard, the Committee notes, for instance, the existence of a special department for child labour inspections under the Ministry of Manpower and Migration (MoMM), as well as child welfare units in all MoMM directorates. The Committee also welcomes the Government’s indication that a number of awareness-raising activities on the rights of children have been organized. Finally, the Committee notes that 70 violations of provisions relating to child labour were detected in 2011, and that the penalties provided for under the national legislation were applied in these cases. The Committee understands, from the information previously contained in the Government’s report under Convention No. 138, that the number of violations detected in the area of child labour seems to have significantly decreased (from 436 in 2009 to 70 in 2011). Noting that the Government has not provided the information requested in this regard, the Committee once again asks the Government to provide information on measures adopted to reinforce the role of the labour inspectorate in the area of child labour. It asks the Government to provide the Office with information on the educational activities carried out by the labour inspectorate, as well as on the number of inspection visits conducted in the area of child labour, the number of violations detected and the legal provisions to which they relate, as well as specific information on the penalties imposed (the amount of fines imposed and other measures ordered, such as the suspension of operations, imprisonment or other administrative or judicial measures taken in relation to users of child labour), during the period covered by the next report.

Please also provide an explanation of the reasons for the decrease in the number of violations of child labour detected.

Noting that the annual reports on the work of the labour inspection services for 2010 and 2011 do not contain any information on the work of the labour inspectorate in the area of child labour, the Committee requests the Government to ensure that relevant information will be included in future annual inspection reports.

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