Doc. 7678
2 October 1996

MOTION FOR A RECOMMENDATION on child labour

presented by GUSENBAUER and others

This motion has not been discussed in the Assembly and commits only the members who have signed it

      Although slavery was abolished more than a century ago there still exists a form of slavery in the exploitation of child labour, not only in developing countries but also in developed countries, including some member states of the Council of Europe.

      In developing countries child labour is widespread and in some countries children under eight work in unacceptable conditions with a very low salary thus enabling the firms that use them to sell their products more cheaply to developed countries.

      The so-called "delocalisation" encourages these practices without any possibility of protecting the most vulnerable part of society.

      So far the World Trade Organisation (WTO) does not include any social clause which could apply on a world scale.

      The European Social Charter, protects the rights of children and young people by providing that the minimum age of admission to employment shall be 15 years, however this article is not compulsury for Contracting States, and in any case it does not apply to children in non-member states.

      The Assembly therefore recommends the Committee of Ministers :

i.       to invite governments of member states to ratify the European Social Charter and the Revised European Social Charter;

ii.       to undertake to consider themselves bound by Article 7 of the Charter concerning the right of children and young persons to protection and providing that the minimum age of admission to employment shall be 15 years;

iii.       to see to it that a clause on minimum age for admission to employment be included in the international trade regulations, through the WTO;

iv.       to refuse to have trade relations with countries where child labour is exploited.

Signed: 1

Gusenbauer, Austria, SOC

About, France, LDR

Christodoulides, Cyprus, UEL

Dinçer, Turkey, SOC

Err, Luxembourg, SOC

Guirado, Spain, SOC

Lentz-Cornette, Luxembourg, EPP

Noveská, Czech Republic, SOC

Pattison, Ireland, SOC

Ruffy, Switzerland, SOC

Valkeniers, Belgium, LDR

Vermot-Mangold, Switzerland, SOC

1 1       SOC : Socialist Group

      EPP : Group of the European People's Party

      EDG : European Democratic Group

      LDR : Liberal, Democratic and Reformers Group

      UEL : Group of the Unified European Left