ILO achieves historic universal agreement on child labour convention
For the first time ever, all 187 member states in the International Labour Organisation (ILO) ratified the convention on child labour, a commitment to stop child labour worldwide.
Convention 182 of the ILO on the worst forms of child labour achieved universal ratification, following the consent of the Kingdom of Tonga, said a statement from the organisation today.
Ambassador for the Kingdom of Tonga, Titilupe Fanetupouvava'u Tuivakano, formally deposited the ratification instruments with ILO Director-General Guy Ryder today.
The Convention is the most rapidly ratified one in the history of the organisation since its adoption 21 years ago by the International Labour Conference.
"Universal ratification of Convention 182 is a historic first that means that all children now have legal protection against the worst forms of child labour," said ILO Director-General Guy Ryder.
"It reflects a global commitment that the worst forms of child labour, such as slavery, sexual exploitation, the use of children in armed conflict or other illicit or hazardous work that compromises children's health, morals or psychological wellbeing, have no place in our society."
Secretary-General of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), Sharan Burrow, welcomed the ratification.
"Universal ratification of Convention 182 is a potent and timely reminder of the importance of ILO standards and the need for multilateral solutions to global problems. Child labour is a grievous violation of fundamental rights, and it is incumbent on the ILO's constituents and the international community to ensure that this Convention is fully implemented, including through due diligence in global supply chains," she said.
"The universal ratification of ILO Convention No. 182 on the worst forms of child labour is a historic moment," said Roberto Suárez Santos, Secretary-General of the International Organization of Employers (IOE).
"Throughout the years, the IOE and its member organisations have supported the implementation of this Convention. Today, the business community is both aware of and acting on the need to do business with respect for children's rights. This is even more urgent in the times of the Covid-19 pandemic. We cannot allow the fight against the worst forms of child labour to backslide. Together we can work towards the end of child labour in all its forms."
This universal ratification is a further step towards making more concrete the aspirations of Kailash Satyarthi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, when he said: "I dream of a world full of safe children and safe childhoods; …I dream of a world where every child enjoys the freedom to be a child."
The ILO estimates that there are 152 million children in child labour, 73 million of whom are engaged in hazardous work. Seventy percent of all child labour takes place in agriculture and is mostly related to poverty and parents' difficulties finding decent work.
Convention No. 182 calls for the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour, including slavery, forced labour and trafficking. It prohibits the use of children in armed conflict, prostitution, pornography and illicit activities such as drug trafficking, and in hazardous work.
It is one of the ILO's eight Fundamental Conventions. These cover the abolition of child labour, the elimination of forced labour, the abolition of work-related discrimination and the rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining.
These principles are also covered by the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work (1998).
Since the ILO's founding in 1919, child labour has been a core concern. The organization's first Director, Albert Thomas, described child labour as, "the exploitation of childhood which constitutes the evil… most unbearable to the human heart. Serious work in social legislation begins always with the protection of children."
It is the focus of one of the ILO's largest development cooperation programmes -- the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC+), which has supported over 100 countries in all continents.
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