Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2024, published 113rd ILC session (2025)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Belgium (Ratification: 1988)

The Committee notes the joint observations of the Confederation of Christian Trade Unions (CSC), the General Labour Federation of Belgium (FGTB) and the General Confederation of Liberal Trade Unions of Belgium (CGSLB), received on 30 August 2024.

Article 2(1) of the Convention. Scope of application. The Committee previously noted, with reference to the Labour Act of 16 March 1971, that: (1) section 2 (formerly section 6 prohibited work for children under 15 years of age; (2) the ban on the work of children established in section 1 only applied to persons in an employment relationship or holding an employment contract; (3) the Act therefore appeared to exclude work done by children on their own account. The Government indicated that work as a trader was not possible before the age of 18 years and that for work as an artisan the minimum age required was 16 years.

The Committee notes the indications in the joint observations of the CSC, FGTB and CGSLB that: (1) the Commercial Code, which prohibited young persons under 18 years of age from operating as traders, has been abolished; (2) the new Code of Economic Law does not contain any specific rules for minors; and (3) hence there is no longer anything to prevent a minor from being regarded as an entrepreneur when exercising an independent occupational activity. The Committee takes note of the Government’s response in which it indicates that: (1) section 7.1 of the Labour Act of 16 March 1971, as modified in 1993, prohibits a child from working or from being employed in any type of activity outside the framework of their education or training; (2) more generally, the conclusion of a contract with a minor is a cause for relative nullity based on his incapacity (sections 5.41 and 5.42 of the Civil Code); and (3) in conclusion, the exercise of an economic activity is only authorized to the extent that it is not excluded by section 7.1 of the Labour Act of 16 March 1971 and any contract concluded within the framework of an economic activity (for example, the provision of services by a minor on his own account) could be annulled due to the incapacity of the contracting child. The Committee takes due note of the Government’s reply.

Articles 3 and 8. Hazardous work and artistic performances. The Committee notes that the CSC, FGTB and CGSLB, in their observations on the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182), express the view that the new phenomenon of “child influencers” is not compatible with the principle of the prohibition of child labour. These child influencers, whether on their own initiative or that of their parents, appear on video displaying products and as a result are able to make large amounts of money. The CSC, FGTB and CGSLB refer to a study which suggests that child influencers are exposed to similar risks to those faced by children working in the entertainment industry but do not have the same protection. The Committee takes note of the Government’s response in this regard, indicating that, according to an analysis conducted by the administration in 2022, using children as influencers on social media, by having them regularly and repeatedly post photos or videos of themselves with a particular product, constitutes a form of child labour, to which the prohibition provided for in section 7.1 Labour Act of 16 March 1971 applies. The Government specifies that, as the legislation currently stands, no individual exemptions can be granted at this time. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to ensure that the creation of content on social media by “child influencers”: (i) is not, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out, likely to jeopardize the health, safety or morals of these children; and (ii) does not interfere with compulsory schooling, including the time needed for homework, and allows sufficient time for rest during the day and for leisure activities, as provided for in paragraph 13(1)(b) of the Minimum Age Recommendation, 1973 (No. 146).