BARBADOS: UPDATE OF WORST FORMS OF CHILD LABOR

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BRIDGETOWN 002211

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CAR AND DRL/IL (TU DANG)
LABOR DEPARTMENT FOR ILAB (TINA MCCARTER)
SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ELAB EIND ETRD PHUM SOCI EAID BB XL
SUBJECT: BARBADOS: UPDATE OF WORST FORMS OF CHILD LABOR
INFORMATION

REF: STATE 184972


1. Summary: While Barbados does not have a comprehensive
policy or action program on child labor, it does have a solid
framework of policies in areas connected with child labor,
including education, child care, welfare, social security,
and labor administration. Barbados has only recently begun
focusing on the issue of child labor, having been jolted into
action by a 2002 ILO-conducted Rapid Assessment Study, which
found a small percentage of the children surveyed engaged in
activities suggestive of child labor and the worst forms of
child labor. In seeking to address these issues, Barbados
has been hampered by a lack of resources and a general
tendency among Barbadians to avoid tackling sensitive issues
like child labor or child abuse. End Summary.


2. The following answers are keyed to questions concerning
worst forms of child labor contained in reftel:

A) Laws and regulations proscribing the worst forms of child
labor.

Barbados has ratified both ILO Conventions 138 and 182.
While Barbados has not adopted legislation addressing child
labor per se, the country has in place laws and regulations
on minimum age, compulsory education, childcare protection,
social security, and labor administration, as well as the
criminal code, which outlaws among other things prostitution,
pornography, and drug trafficking. A 2005 ILO Review of
Child Labor Laws of Barbados gave Barbados generally high
marks for the legislative measures that are in place to
shield children from child labor and the worst forms of child
labor. The ILO Review suggested several legislative and
regulatory changes, which are currently under review by the
government of Barbados, according to Shelley Carrington, the
Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and
Social Security.

Most significantly, Barbados currently lacks a list of
hazardous occupations or occupations considered to be the
worst forms of child labor. In a meeting with LaborOff,
Carrington stated that the ILO asked Barbados to develop the
list of hazardous occupations by spring 2007, but Carrington
acknowledged that her Ministry has made little headway on
this priority project. She said that she plans to ask the
ILO for a sample list and guidance on whether the list must
be adopted by the government through the legislative process.
Barbados is, however, in the process of implementing the
2005 Law on Occupational Health and Safety, which should fill
an important gap in Barbados' labor laws. According to the
Chief Labour Officer, Edla Lowe, the government expects to
promulgate most of the regulations related to the 2005 law by
the end of 2006.

Barbados' minimum age for employment is set at 16, which is
also the age until which children are required to attend
school. In its 2005 Review, the ILO suggested that the
definition of Barbados' minimum age should apply to all
sectors of the economy, rather than the much narrower current
scope of "industrial undertakings and ships" only. The ILO
Review also suggested that Barbados' Employment
(Miscellaneous Provisions) Act be amended to clarify and
narrow its definition of light work.

B) Regulations for implementation and enforcement of
proscription against the worst forms of child labor.

The government implements and enforces labor laws through the
Department of Labour in the Ministry of Labour and Social
Security. The Department has eight industrial relations
inspectors and four occupational safety and health
inspectors. All of these inspectors received training on
child labor issues during a November 2005 ILO-sponsored
workshop. While the inspectors conduct periodic inspections,
both announced and unannounced, of Barbadian companies,
Carrington noted that they have yet to uncover any problems
with child labor. According to Carrington, any children
engaged in illegal work or in the worst forms of child labor
would do so in the country's informal economy, over which the
Department of Labour has little oversight. The Child Care
Board is charged with investigating all matters concerning

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the welfare of children and the Royal Barbados Police Force
would investigate all suspected criminal activities.

According to Carrington, the government has little data on
the extent of child labor and the worst forms of child labor
problems in Barbados. The results of the ILO's 2002 Rapid
Assessment Study, which found instances suggestive of child
labor and the worst forms of child labor in Barbados,
surprised the government, which until then did not focus on
these issues. Carrington said that Barbados "woke up" as a
result of the Rapid Assessment, and the government has begun
taking measures to address the problems. The government
developed a "survey instrument," which was piloted in the
school system and is now being used by social agencies to
collect data on potential instances of the worst forms of
child labor. The survey has come into use only in October
2006, and according to Carrington, preliminary results will
not be available until spring 2007.

While this is a positive first step, Carrington thought that
uncovering the true extent of the worst forms of child labor
problem in Barbados would be extremely difficult because the
government lacks the necessary resources and expertise. She
also noted that the problem remains hidden not only because
it is illegal but also because of Barbadians' general
tendency to avoid discussing and seeking solutions to
sensitive problems such as child abuse. Nevertheless,
Carrington concluded from the ILO 2002 Rapid Assessment and
anecdotal evidence that child labor and the worst forms of
child labor problems were not widespread in Barbados.
Barbados' growing economy, strong social safety net, and high
standing in the UN Human Development Index would also suggest
that Barbadian children would be less likely to resort to or
be pressured into the worst forms of child labor because of
poverty. Representatives of the ILO, Barbadian employers,
and organized labor agreed with this assessment. Heather
Stewart, a UNICEF Project Officer based in Barbados, was more
cautious, noting that the lack of data should not be
interpreted as an absence of the problem. Stewart agreed
with Carrington's statement that the involvement of children
in prostitution, pornography, and drug trafficking would
likely be among Barbados' most serious challenges.

The National Steering Committee on Child Labour, created in
response to the ILO 2002 Rapid Assessment, has sought to
raise Barbadians' awareness of child labor issues through
educational workshops. These have been targeted at community
groups, teachers, media, religious organizations, and the
police. Furthermore, related issues such as child abuse have
been receiving increasing attention in the media. UNICEF,
which has been focused on the related issue of child abuse,
has sought to strengthen the region's child abuse reporting
and analysis of data, as well as to improve the targeting of
government and other resources.

C) Whether there are social programs to prevent and withdraw
children from the worst forms of child labor.

Barbados has used education as the primary tool to prevent
child labor and the worst forms of child labor. Education is
compulsory from the age of 5 to 16 years, and it is free
through the tertiary level. Attendance at primary and
secondary schools is monitored by the Ministry of Education's
Truancy Office, and attendance problems are regularly
reported to the Child Care Board. The government has
announced plans for free pre-school education and hopes to
double the country's number of university graduates over the
next 10-15 years. The government has also established
vocational and technical training programs.

D) Policies aimed at the elimination of the worst forms of
child labor.

Barbados does not have a comprehensive policy or national
program of action on child labor. Carrington acknowledged
that this policy gap has hindered her Ministry's efforts to
focus attention and resources on the problem of child labor.
Nevertheless, the government has sought to use what
instruments it does have available to raise awareness of the
issue. The Minister of Labour, Rawle Eastmond, has publicly
spoken out on the issue, as have other government officials.

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E) Progress toward eliminating the worst forms of child labor.

The government of Barbados has made some progress toward
eliminating the worst forms of child labor. In response to
the ILO 2002 Rapid Assessment, the government established the
National Steering Committee on Child Labour, drawing together
relevant stakeholders, including social agencies, the
national HIV commission, police, UNICEF, etc. The Steering
Committee and its various subcommittees have met to discuss
child labor on a number of occasions, but even Carrington
admitted that more needs to be done to translate these
discussions into actions. So far, the educational workshops
have been the most concrete result of the Steering
Committee's work.

Some progress is also visible in raising public awareness of
child labor and the worst forms of child labor. Sir Roy
Trotman, General Secretary of the Barbados Workers Union and
Worker Vice-Chairperson of the ILO Governing Body, recently
made a passionate public appeal to Caribbean governments to
focus on the issue of child labor. His commitment to this
issue will help keep the pressure on the Barbadian government
to continue its efforts to stamp out child labor and its
worst forms.
OURISMAN