Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2019, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) - French Polynesia

Article 2(2)(c) of the Convention. Prison labour hired to private enterprises. The Committee previously noted that under section 717-3 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, applicable in French Polynesia under Decree No. 2009-537 of 14 May 2009, prison work is voluntary. It noted, however, that sections D.P. 98 and D.P. 99 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, applicable in French Polynesia, based on Decree No. 95-300 of 17 March 1995, seem to imply that prison work is compulsory and therefore requested the Government to indicate the measures taken to ensure that the voluntary nature of prison work is unequivocally reflected in the legislation applicable on the territory of French Polynesia. It also noted that the Prison Act adopted in 2009, which is applicable to French Polynesia subject to certain adjustments, provides that the participation of prisoners in occupational activities organized in prisons is governed by a tender document drafted by the prison administration, and that under Decree No. 2011-1576 of 17 November 2011, the level of remuneration is established at 45 per cent of the minimum wage for productive activities. The Committee therefore requested the Government to provide information on the measures taken to continue to ensure that the conditions of work of detainees working for private entities approximate those of a free working relationship.

The Government indicates in its report that, in the Tatutu de Papeari and Faa’a-Nuutania detention centres on Tahiti Island, prison labour, namely work carried out by detainees for private entities, is based on the principle of voluntariness. The Government indicates that Tatutu de Papeari prison is currently working in cooperation with four private legal entities, which employ a total of 23 prisoners. The activities included are the wiring of electric meters, sewing and packaging of food. Remuneration is paid per item, depending on the time required to complete the task and the complexity of the operations carried out. In Faa’a Nuutania prison, prison labour involves the packaging of headphones and ironing. The Committee further notes that, according to the “Opinion on the Penitentiary Issue in Overseas Territories” of the National Consultative Commission for Human Rights of 18 May 2017, the number of full-time equivalent prison jobs in the Faa’a-Nuutania prison stands at 22.1, and for the general service it is 84.5.

The Committee recalls that, to be compatible with the Convention, prisoners working for private enterprises must have given their formal consent to this work and a certain number of safeguards must be in place to ensure that this work is carried out in conditions which approximate a free labour relationship. The Committee therefore requests the Government to take the necessary measures to amend the legislation to ensure that any work carried out by prisoners for private enterprises is entirely voluntary, in order to align legislation with the Convention and practice mentioned. It requests the Government to keep it abreast of any amendments to the provisions applicable to prison work in the French Polynesia territory. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the number of prisoners working for private enterprises, the nature of the work carried out and the hourly rates of pay, in all detention centres in French Polynesia.