TURKEY: CHILD LABOR INFORMATION FOR TRADE AND

UNCLAS ANKARA 000119 SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/SE AND DRL/ILCSR TU DANG, LABOR FOR DOL/ILAB TINA MCCARTER E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ELAB EIND ETRD PHUS SOCI USAID TU SUBJECT: TURKEY: CHILD LABOR INFORMATION FOR TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT ACT 2008 REPORT REF: STATE 127448 ¶1. Turkey continues its efforts to eliminate all forms of child labor, with a special emphasis on eliminating all instances of worst forms of child labor, to include increasing access to basic and vocational education to improve the prospects of children currently working, and withdrawing them from employment while they are children. Post provides new information below in response to the request for updated information on those efforts conveyed in reftel, paragraph 9, sections A through E. ¶A. Laws and regulations proscribing the worst forms of child labor: Turkey continued to implement provisions stipulated throughout Turkish law regarding the elimination of child labor, as well as its cooperative agreement with the ILO's International Program on the Elimination of Child Labor (IPEC),the commitment to which was extended in 2006 through September 2011. With regard to the specific questions posed in paragraph nine, subpara A of reftel: -- There were no new laws promulgated in 2008 specific to child labor. -- According to Article 71 of Turkish Labor Law 4857, "employment of children "who have not completed the age of 15 (i.e., under the age of 16) is prohibited." -- With regard to exceptions to the minimum age law, Article 71 of Labor Law 4857 states that "children who have completed 14 years of age and their primary education may be employed in light work that does not obstruct his or her physical, mental, or moral development and that does not obstruct his or her continuation of studies if he or she attends school." -- Regarding hazardous work, Article 85 of Labor Law 4857 states, "children and young workers who have not completed the age of 16 years (i.e., who are under the age of 17) cannot be employed in heavy or hazardous works." There is a separate regulation on "Heavy and Hazardous Works" that defines what shall be regarded as heavy or hazardous work and what work may be allowed to be performed by young (i.e., 17 or 18 year old) workers. Article 72 of the same labor law prohibits the employment of anyone under the age of 19 in mines or other underground work, including construction of tunnels or sewage systems. Article 73 prohibits the employment of children under the age of 19 in industrial 
employment sites at night. -- Concerning worst forms of child labor, Turkey ratified the UN Charter on Children's Rights in 1990, the ILO Charter 138 in 1998 and ILO Charter 182 in 2001. International agreements to which Turkey accedes carry force of law in Turkey according to Turkish law. -- All work specified under ILO Charter 182 on worst forms of child labor is prohibited in Turkey. However, Turkey has identified three areas of particular focus that continue to pose problems here, including: child labor in the streets, employment of children in heavy industry or in hazardous conditions in small and medium-size enterprises, and working as a salaried employee in "mobile and temporary" (i.e., seasonal) agriculture other than in connection with work performed on a family farm. Penalties for those found to be in violation of the law in connection with the employment of children can include an administrative fine, imprisonment, and/or removal of the child from households and granting custody to the state. -- Minimum age for recruitment into the military in Turkey is ¶20. There is no differentiation with regard to involvement in armed conflict. ¶B. Regulations for implementation and enforcement of proscriptions against the worst forms of child labor: -- Legal remedies available to government agencies that enforce child labor and worst forms of child labor laws include the removal of children from workplaces; the levy of fines or pursuing criminal complaints with the possible result of imprisonment; and removal of children from the custody of parents/guardians found guilty of violating child labor laws. Article 105 of Labor Law 4587 calls for a set fine per child for workplaces found to be in violation of child labor laws. The current amount is about 1000 Turkish Lira (approximately 625 dollars) and can be raised annually by the Ministry of Finance. -- Ministry of Labor inspectors are instructed to give priority to complaints regarding allegations of child labor received by the ministry or uncovered in routine inspections, and routinely do. -- Regarding the level of resources devoted by the government to investigating child labor and worst forms of child labor cases, post has been unable to secure specific funding levels from GOT sources. Labor Ministry officials indicated that public institutions routinely cooperate with NGOs and other social partners on the elimination of child labor and public funding typically entails part or all of the projects designed to address the issue. Post will continue to seek more specific information in response to this question, but GOT budget figures for the Ministry of Labor did not have a separate line item specific to combating child labor. Rather, from a budgetary standpoint, child labor was treated more as a cross-cutting issue, addressed by a host of different ministries, directorates general, and bureaus. -- As of the end of December 2008, the Government employed a total of 546 labor inspectors but was in the process of hiring an additional 75 individuals to work as "deputy inspectors." These 75 will begin work at the end of January ¶2009. According to the Labor Inspection Board, all inspectors have been trained in child labor issues and to identify under-age children in the workplace and avenues of redress in such instances. -- The Turkish National Police employs a total of 3500 officers tasked with addressing issues regarding juveniles. They do not differentiate between those focused on child labor, child exploitation, etc. but rather handle the full panoply of issues related to the treatment of children and their protection under the laws of Turkey. -- According to the Labor Inspection Board, statistics for calendar year 2008 are still being compiled and will not be finalized until the end of March 2009. For the period January 1-October 31, 2008, the Board reports it conducted inspections of 29,500 work places regarding labor health and safety, accounting for workplaces that employed 1.3 million men, 189,000 women, 1145 apprentices, and 37 children. During the same period, the Board reports it inspected 32,088 workplaces regarding work hours, salaries, leave, and compensation, accounting for workplaces that employed 589,000 men, 135,000 women, 1862 apprentices, and 130 children. The Board informed post that its data collection system did not provide it the capability of specifically tracking the punishments levied to each individual workplace that was found to be employing children. However, the Social Security Institution (SSI) reported to us that it routinely reports incidence of child labor discovered during its inspections of workplaces to the Labor Inspection Board for initiation of necessary legal procedures. SSI indicates that in 2008, it uncovered 20 violations of employment of underage children in restaurants. The children were removed from the workplaces and the offices of the applicable provincial governor were informed for follow-up. The governors' offices contacted the families and arranged for the children to be enrolled in school. The employers were fined. -- With regard to awareness-raising and training activities, the Ministry of Labor claims it provides regular refresher training for state employees in charge of enforcing child labor laws. ¶C. Whether there are social programs specifically designed to prevent and withdraw children from the worst forms of child labor: -- The GOT continues to provide care and rehabilitation services to children subject to the worst forms of child labor at 44 centers located throughout the country. Two European Union-funded ILO projects focused on child labor were completed in 2007, while the USDOL-funded $6 million project, "From the Fields to School," which included contributions from both the Ministries of Labor and National Education, came to a close in September 2008, having targeted children working under hazardous conditions in season agriculture in four provinces. No new sources of funding were identified in 2008 to initiate new child labor-specific projects. -- In the Minister of Labor's 2009 budget speech before parliament, the Minister referred to the completion of the USDOL project and a separate project on "Awareness Raising Against Child Labor Through Media Organization." He also noted he had signed a protocol in late 2008 on the "Establishment of a National Information System on Children Under Risk," and noted that MOL plans to initiate new projects during the 2009-2013 time frame further targeting worst forms of child labor in four provinces, including Istanbul. No further details are yet available on these. Minister Celik also noted MOL would be conducting an "awareness raising campaign at the national level in 2009." -- According to the Prime Ministry's Social Assistance and Solidarity Directorate General (SYDGM) and the Prime Ministry's Social Services and Child Protection Institution (SHCEK),the primary reason that child labor continues in Turkey at all is family poverty. To help address the societal issues linked to poverty, SYDGM provided assistance and professional training for families with incomes below the poverty level. The assistance included direct provision of cash, food, fuel, and housing, as well as health care costs associated with children attending school. In rural areas, direct price supports and support for inputs were provided directly to farmers. SHCEK noted its focus has been on attending to the needs of children working in the streets, ensuring they are able to attend school. -- Labor Ministry officials expressed concern, however, that with the economic crisis hitting Turkey, insufficient government funding and a lack of international support, combined with additional financial pressure on families, could pose a danger to the country's steady decrease in the incidence of child labor. ¶D. Does the country have a comprehensive policy aimed at the elimination of the worst forms of child labor? -- Turkey's efforts in this area are coordinated through the GOT's Time-Bound Policy and Program Framework for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labor, which is designed to totally eliminate the worst forms of child labor in Turkey by 2014. -- As noted in C above, child labor issues are taken into consideration and addressed in poverty reduction programs. -- To implement Turkey's Time-Bound Policy and Program Framework, public institutions, labor and employer confederations, and NGOs began implementing child labor projects which, according to the Ministry of Labor, have provided invaluable information on the scope of the child labor problem in Turkey, raised societal consciousness about the problem, and led to impressive gains in the fight against child labor. MOL officials point to the diminishing number of children between the ages of 6 and 17 who are involved in economic activities (2,269,000 in 1994; 1,630,000 in 1999; 958,000 in 2006) as clear evidence the GOT's efforts have been successful and the goal of eliminating all incidence of the worst forms of child labor by 2014 is within reach. -- Eight years of primary education are compulsory, both in law and in practice. Such education is provided free of charge in public schools, both in law and in practice. Some supplies and uniforms must be provided by parents. These items are provided through special government programs or NGOs in circumstances where families are unable to afford them. ¶E. Is the country making continual progress toward eliminating the worst forms of child labor? -- As noted in D above, Turkey is making steady progress toward its goal of eliminating all incidence of child labor for children under the age of 15, as well as all incidence of the worst forms of child labor, by 2014. In 2006, ILO identified Turkey as one of three "most successful" countries in eliminating the worst forms of child labor. -- Regarding specific sectors/work activities/goods in which children work, Labor Ministry officials note that children work in some small-scale industries, including furniture and metal-work shops, as well as in the retail and service sectors in very small, often family-run enterprises, and in the streets. Many also work as seasonal labor in the agricultural sector. Children working in the streets and in agriculture are often from families who migrate internally in search of work and are especially vulnerable to remaining uneducated because of the temporary nature of their presence in any one place. Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turk ey Jeffrey