Solicitud directa (CEACR) - Adopción: 2002, Publicación: 91ª reunión CIT (2003)

Convenio sobre la edad mínima, 1973 (núm. 138) - Eslovaquia (Ratificación : 1997)

The Committee notes Act No. 311/2001, of 2 July 2001, issuing the Labour Code, as amended by Act No. 165/2002, which entered into force on 1 April 2002, and it requests the Government to provide particulars on the following points.

Article 2, paragraph 1, of the Convention. The Committee notes the comments made by the ICFTU on the application of the Convention in Slovakia, contained in document ELS/CH, dated 16 November 2001, and forwarded to the Government by the Office on 2 January 2002, according to which the minimum age for admission to employment or work, set at 15 years, is not enforced in the Roma community. Noting that the Government has not replied to these comments, the Committee requests it to provide information on the measures which have been taken or are envisaged to ensure the application of the legislation on the minimum age for admission to employment or work in the Roma community.

The Committee notes paragraph 11(2) of the Labour Code, under the terms of which a natural person acquires the capacity to be subject to rights and obligations as an employee within labour relations and the capacity to acquire such rights and assume such obligations by her/his own legal actions on the day that that person reaches 15 years of age, but that an employer must not agree upon a date for a natural person to take up employment prior to her/his completion of compulsory schooling. It notes that by virtue of point 1(1), the Labour Code applies to labour relations in connection with the employment of natural persons by legal or natural persons, as well as collective labour relations. As self-employment is excluded from the scope of the Labour Code, the Committee requests the Government to indicate whether there are laws or regulations prohibiting persons under 15 years of age from engaging in any form of economic activity, including work performed outside an employment contract.

Article 3, paragraph 1. The Committee notes that, pursuant to paragraph 173 of the Labour Code, an employer may only employ adolescent employees (that is, under paragraph 40(3), employees under 18 years of age) for such work as is appropriate to their physical and mental development, which does not jeopardize their morality, and must provide them with increased care at work. The Committee notes that paragraph 175 explicitly prohibits the employment of adolescents for work underground in the extraction of minerals or the drilling of tunnels and passages (paragraph 175(1)), or for work which, taking into account the anatomical, physiological and mental individualities of their age, is inappropriate or dangerous for her/him or detrimental to her/his health (paragraph 175(2)). It also notes that paragraph 175(4) lays down that an employer may employ adolescent employees neither for work at which they are exposed to an increased risk of accident, nor the performance of which could gravely endanger the safety and health of co-workers or other persons. The Committee has however noted under Article 2, paragraph 1, above that self-employment is excluded from the scope of the Labour Code. The Committee therefore requests the Government to indicate whether specific provisions prohibit persons under 18 years of age from performing hazardous work outside an employment contract.

Article 3, paragraphs 2 and 3. The Committee notes that under paragraph 175(3) of the Labour Code, lists of work and workplaces that are prohibited for adolescents and persons of an age approximating that of an adolescent, as well as more detailed conditions under which adolescents may perform such work in the context of vocational training, shall be established by a Government regulation. The Committee understands, from information contained in the Government’s report, that such regulations have been adopted, and therefore requests it to provide a copy. The Committee notes, with regard to the consultation of employers’ and workers’ organizations, the Government’s statement that such consultations were held prior to the establishment of the lists of prohibited types of work, in accordance with article 3 of Act No. 106/99 ("Tripartite Act"). It notes that all measures concerning labour and social relations, including the above lists, are subject to tripartite consultation under the terms of the above Act. The Committee requests the Government to provide a copy of the Act.

Article 6. In addition to the provision of a copy of the regulations establishing the conditions in which adolescents may perform work which is normally prohibited for the purposes of vocational training, as requested in the previous paragraph, the Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information on all vocational training programmes and the conditions applicable to them (age, performance of work, supervision, instruction, etc.).

Article 7, paragraphs 1 and 3. The Committee notes that paragraph 11(4) of the Labour Code provides for the possibility of a person who has not reached the age of 15 years to perform exceptionally light work not affecting, by its character and scope, the person’s health, safety, further development or full-time schooling, in the case of work in the following fields: (a) cultural and artistic performances; (b) sports events; and (c) advertising activities. It notes that, under the terms of paragraph 11(5), authorization for the performance of light work must be given by the competent labour inspector, upon agreement with a health protection body, and must indicate the number of hours and conditions for the performance of the light work. The Committee notes that no minimum age is determined for the performance of light work. It also notes that the category of work referred to in paragraph 11(4) corresponds to activities such as artistic performances, and not light work within the meaning of the Convention. The Committee draws the Government’s attention to the fact that, while the participation of children in such activities as artistic performances may also lie within the category of light work, the requirements in respect of the two categories of work are in principle very different. Indeed, participation in activities such as artistic performances may be authorized, in individual cases, and after consultation with the organizations of employers and workers concerned, by the competent authority, which must in addition limit the number of hours during which and prescribe the conditions in which employment or work is allowed (Article 8, paragraphs 1 and 2); however, light work may only be permitted for persons between 13 and 15 years of age on condition that such work is, firstly, not likely to be harmful to their health or development and, secondly, not such as to prejudice their attendance at school, their participation in vocational orientation or training programmes approved by the competent authority, or their capacity to benefit from the instruction received (Article 7, paragraph 1). The Committee therefore requests the Government to indicate whether there exist provisions in laws or regulations, firstly, setting forth a minimum age of 13 years for the performance of light work and, secondly, permitting the employment of persons of age between 13 and 15 years in light work in fields other than those referred to in paragraph 11(4) of the Labour Code. It also requests the Government to provide copies of the permits issued under paragraph 11(5) of the Labour Code by the labour inspectorate. In view of the fact that light work must not, in accordance with Article 7, paragraph 1(b), be such as to prejudice attendance at school, participation in vocational orientation or training programmes approved by the competent authority or the capacity of the persons concerned to benefit from the instruction received, the Committee also requests the Government to specify whether the term "schooling" used in paragraph 11(4) of the Labour Code includes participation in vocational orientation or training programmes, in conformity with the above provisions of the Convention.

Article 9, paragraphs 1 and 2. The Committee notes  paragraph 150 of the Labour Code, under which labour inspection shall be carried out according to a special law, and requests the Government to provide a copy of this law. The Committee also requests the Government to indicate the provisions which stipulate, firstly, the necessary measures, including appropriate penalties, to ensure the effective enforcement of the provisions of the Convention and, secondly, the definition of the persons responsible for compliance with the provisions giving effect to the Convention.

Part V of the report form. The Committee requests the Government to provide a general appreciation of the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice including, where possible, statistical data on the number of children engaged in an economic activity, the sectors concerned, the number and nature of the contraventions reported and the penalties imposed.