Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2016, published 106th ILC session (2017)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Uruguay (Ratification: 1977)

Article 1 of the Convention. National policy to ensure the effective abolition of child labour. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the National Committee for the Elimination of Child Labour (CETI) had adopted a plan of action for the elimination of child labour in waste collection (2011–15). It requested that the Government provide information on the measures adopted and the results achieved in the context of this plan of action. The Committee noted that CETI had undertaken to carry out a survey, with ILO assistance, on child labour in waste sorting and collection in the territories covered by the implementation of phase No. 1 of the plan of action.

The Committee notes that the Government’s report does not contain information on this subject. It notes, however, that according to the concluding observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child of 5 March 2015, children are victims of economic exploitation, including in waste collection and recycling (CRC/C/URY/CO/3-5, paragraph 65). Observing that the plan of action for the elimination of child labour in waste collection came to an end in 2015, the Committee once again requests that the Government provide information on the final evaluation of the survey referred to above. It also requests that the Government provide information on the new national policies that have been implemented to ensure the effective abolition of child labour.

Article 3(2). Determination of types of hazardous work. In relation to the adoption of a list of hazardous types of work, the Committee refers to its detailed comments on the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182).

Article 9(2). Persons responsible for enforcing the Convention and application of the Convention in practice. In its previous comments, the Committee requested that the Government provide information on the measures taken to strengthen the capacity of the National Department for the Inspection of Child Labour and Work by Young Persons, which had only five accredited inspectors for the whole country. The Government indicated that seven new labour inspectors had been assigned to the department. The Committee nevertheless observed that according to the results of the National Child Labour Survey conducted by the National Institute of Statistics with the support of the ILO–IPEC SIMPOC programme, children and young persons between five and 18 years of age in rural areas are much more exposed to hazardous work than those in urban areas (15.9 per cent compared with 7.9 per cent).

The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that the number of inspectors in the National Department for the Inspection of Child Labour and Work by Young Persons has been reduced to seven, but that new personnel will be recruited in the near future. The Government also indicates that between December 2014 and November 2015, labour inspectors carried out 3,132 inspections across the whole territory and found 47 offences relating to the absence of documents, work carried out by young persons without authorization, or violations of working and rest time. In addition, the inspections revealed 17 cases of children working under the age of 15 years. The Committee also notes in its detailed comments made on the application of the Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81), that labour inspectors have participated in a number of training exercises. The Committee takes due note of the efforts made by the Government and requests that it continue its efforts to strengthen the capacities of the National Department for the Inspection of Child Labour and Work by Young Persons so as to enable it to detect all cases of child labour, particularly in rural areas.