Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2001, published 90th ILC session (2002)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Finland (Ratification: 1976)

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government, and requests the Government to supply further information on the following points.

Article 2, paragraph 1, of the Convention. The Committee notes that the Act on Young Workers (998/1993) applies to work performed by a person under the age of 18 years under an employment or service relationship. The Government in its last report declares that the scope of application of the Act on Young Workers corresponds to the scope of application of the Decree on the Protection of Young Workers (508/1986), which in its section 1 states that: "This directive applies to work performed by persons who have not completed their 18th year and to whose work the Act respecting the protection of labour (299/58) applies." Section 3 of Act No. 299/58 excludes from the scope of application:

(1)  work carried out by a person who is living permanently in the same household as his employer and who is related to him (…) unless the employer also normally employs other persons on the same work;

(2)  work carried out by an employee at home or in such circumstances that the employer cannot be expected to supervise the organization of the work;

(3)  household duties carried out in the home of the employer;

(4)  work carried out in connection with ships.

The Committee requests the Government to indicate which measures have been envisaged or taken to regulate the minimum age for such categories of work and for any other work outside an employment relationship, such as self-employment.

Article 3. The Committee notes the list of prohibited occupations in section 2 of Decree No. 508/1986 and the minimum age limit of 18 years to perform such occupations. The Committee also notes the provisions for dangerous work in section 3 of the same Decree which fixes the minimum age for admission to such work at 16 years and the list of dangerous jobs determined, after tripartite consultation, by Decision No. 1432 of the Ministry of Labour of 22 December 1993. The Committee requests the Government whether it avails itself of the provision of Article 3(3) of the Convention, and, in this case, to supply further details on the factors for which the Government declares a minimum age for hazardous occupations less than 18 years, or otherwise, to indicate the measures envisaged or taken to raise the minimum age for performing such occupations to 18 years old, according to Article 3(1) of the Convention.