Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2015, published 105th ILC session (2016)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Honduras (Ratification: 1980)

The Committee notes the observations of the Honduran National Business Council (COHEP), received on 28 August and 24 September 2015, supported by the International Organisation of Employers (IOE).

Article 1 of the Convention. National policy and application of the Convention in practice. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the measures taken to combat child labour, particularly in the context of the implementation of the Plan of Action for the Elimination of Child Labour (2008–15), and their results. The Committee also noted the Government’s indication that 122 labour inspectors distributed among 17 regional offices are responsible for child labour, but that no violations had been reported in this field despite the high percentage of children working under the minimum age. The Committee requested the Government to take practical measures to reinforce the action of the labour inspectorate to prevent and combat child labour.

The Committee notes the joint observations of the COHEP and the IOE according to which new legislation on labour inspection is under discussion with the social partners with a view to remedying the inadequate numbers and lack of specialization, for example in the field of child labour, of labour inspectors in the Secretariat of Labour and Social Security. The Government indicates that the inspection and information services reported 170 inspections and 60 violations in the Department of Women and Young Workers at the central and regional levels in 2014, as well as 48 inspections in the central office between January and June 2015. However, the Committee notes with concern that, among the violations reported, the labour inspectorate has not reported violations relating to the Code for Children and Young Persons and the Regulations on child labour. Furthermore, with regard to the measures adopted in the context of the Plan of Action for the Elimination of Child Labour, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the activities covered by the Plan of Action have been incorporated into the public policy, entitled “Roadmap to make Honduras a country free from child labour”. The Committee also notes that the Government has commenced work on the preparation of a new National Plan of Action for the Elimination of Child Labour 2016–20. It further notes that, in accordance with the revision of the Code for Children and Young Persons through Decree No. 35 2013 of 6 September 2013, new section 128 has extended the coverage of labour inspectors, who henceforth cover any workplace, including homes. However, it notes that, according to the household survey conducted by the National Statistical Institute in 2014, a total of 379,598 children between the ages of 5 and 17 years are engaged in work, or 15.3 per cent, which constitutes an increase in relation to 2013, when there were 328,000 working children. Noting the information on the extension of the coverage of labour inspectors, as envisaged in the Code for Children and Young Persons, the Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures for the adaptation and reinforcement of the capacities of the labour inspection services so as to ensure that the protection afforded by the Convention also covers children working in the informal economy. Further noting that new legislation on labour inspection is under preparation, it requests the Government to provide information on the progress achieved in this regard. The Committee also requests the Government to continue providing information on the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice, supported by statistics on work by children under 14 years of age, extracts from the reports of the labour inspection services and information on the number and nature of violations reported and the penalties imposed. Finally, it requests the Government to provide information on the implementation of the Plan of Action for the Elimination of Child Labour 2016–20, once it has been adopted.

Articles 2(1) and (4). Scope of application and minimum age for admission to employment or work. The Committee noted previously that, under the terms of section 32(2) of the Labour Code, the authorities responsible for supervising work by persons under 14 years of age may authorize them to engage in an economic activity if they consider it indispensable for their subsistence or that of their parents or brothers and sisters, and provided that it does not prevent them from attending compulsory schooling. It also noted that, under the terms of section 2(1) of the Labour Code, agricultural and stock-raising undertakings that do not permanently employ more than 10 workers are excluded from the scope of the Labour Code. It also noted that, in accordance with sections 4 to 6, the Regulations on child labour of 2001 only apply to contractual labour relations. The Government indicated in this regard that a draft revision of the Labour Code had been prepared containing provisions to bring the national labour legislation into conformity with the international Conventions ratified by Honduras. The Committee requested the Government to take the necessary measures to bring the national legislation into conformity with the Convention.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the harmonization of the Labour Code has been underway since 2004. The Committee recalls that, under the terms of Article 2(1) of the Convention, no one under the age specified shall be admitted to employment or work in any occupation, subject to the exemption set out in Articles 4 to 8 of the Convention. It also recalls that the Convention applies to all branches of economic activity and covers all types of employment or work, whether or not they are performed within the framework of an employment relationship or a labour contract, and whether or not the employment or work is paid. Observing that the Government has been referring to the revision of the Labour Code for over ten years, the Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to bring the Labour Code and the 2001 Regulations on child labour into conformity with the Code for Children and Young Persons of 1996 so as to ensure that no child under 14 years of age is authorized to work, including children working in agricultural and stock-raising undertakings which do not permanently employ more than ten workers, and those who work on their own account. It once again requests the Government to provide information on the progress achieved in this respect.

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