Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2012, published 102nd ILC session (2013)

Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) - New Zealand (Ratification: 2001)

The Committee notes the Government’s report. It also notes the comments made by Business New Zealand, as well as the comments made by the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions (NZCTU) concerning the application of the Minimum Age (Industry) Convention (Revised), 1937 (No. 59), and the Government’s reply thereto.

Article 3(d) of the Convention. Hazardous work. Minimum age for admission to hazardous work. The Committee previously noted that, by virtue of section 54(d) of the Health and Safety in Employment Regulations of 1995 (HSE Regulations), hazardous work was prohibited for children under 15 years of age, but was not prohibited for all children under 18 years of age, as specified under Article 3(d) of the Convention. The Committee also noted the allegation of the NZCTU that in 2006, about 300 children under 15 years visited their doctor for a work-related injury, and that accident compensation and rehabilitation assistance was provided to between 1,000–2,000 children between the ages of 15 and 19. In this regard, the Government stated that while it shared the concerns raised by the NZCTU with regard to workplace injuries of children and young persons, which in some cases proved fatal, legislative protections existed to protect young persons. The Government stated that these legislative protections generally ensure that young people are not exposed to hazardous work and that employers have an obligation to ensure a healthy and safe working environment, as well as duties related to training and supervision. The Committee also noted Business New Zealand’s statement that the existing legislative framework provides effective age thresholds for entry into work, particularly when read together with the obligation on all employers to provide their employees of whatever age, with a safe and healthy working environment.

However, the Committee noted the information in a Department of Labour (DoL) research paper entitled “School children in Paid Employment – A summary of research findings” of September 2010 (DoL Report of 2010) according to which employers are not effective in raising school children’s’ awareness of hazards, nor their rights, in the workplace as expected under the Health and Safety in Employment Act. The DoL Report of 2010 referenced a study which found that a third of secondary-school students indicated that their employers had not provided them with any information about workplace hazards. Moreover, this DoL Report of 2010 indicated that inadequacies in training and supervision of children in workplaces were also frequently reported. Additionally, the DoL Report of 2010 indicated that injuries are a common and occasionally serious occurrence in school children’s’ workplaces, with one sixth of secondary school students in part-time work reportedly being injured at work in the previous year. The DoL Report of 2010 indicated that children aged 15–16 were more likely to have had an injury than children aged 13–14, and that 20 per cent of working children of 16 years of age had had an employment injury. The Committee further noted that the Committee on the Rights of the Child, in its concluding observations of 11 April 2011, expressed concern that children between the ages of 15 and 18 are allowed to work in dangerous workplaces (CRC/C/NZL/CO/3-4, paragraph 41).

The Committee notes the statement by Business New Zealand that, in the New Zealand context, it is required that work hazards be eliminated, isolated or minimized, as appropriate. Business New Zealand states that employers must provide training and supervision for anyone engaging in any activity capable of being considered hazardous, as well as protective clothing and equipment, regardless of the age of the employee, but with specific prohibitions applying with respect to young persons under the age of 16. Business New Zealand further states that work for children that is excessively difficult or hazardous is neither condoned nor encouraged in the country.

The Committee notes the statement by the NZCTU, in its comments submitted concerning the application of Convention (Revised) No. 59, that in the country there is little attention given to the nature of work undertaken by children and young people working before or after school, on weekends or during school holidays, nor any direct provisions to ensure that children and young people are not exploited or exposed to unsafe work practices or workplaces. The NZCTU states that while the Government provides some information on the rights of young workers on the website of the Department of Labour, it is up to young people, or their families, to act on this information. The NZCTU also states that accidents records indicated that two 17 year old workers were employed in mines in 2010, and one of the fatalities of a mine disaster in 2010 was a child of 17 years of age. The NZCTU further references a study which found that a quarter of students working in manufacturing report injuries. Moreover, the NZCTU indicates that according to information from the Accident Compensation Corporation, the number of injuries reported by children aged 10–14 in industry was 77 in 2008–09, 72 in 2009–10 and 58 in 2010–11. For the age group 15–19, the number of injuries reported was 4,373 in 2008–09, 2,784 in 2009–10 and 2,548 in 2010–11. However, the NZCTU states that records of injury claims is a poor proxy and that research indicated that young workers were discouraged by employers from reporting their injuries.

The Committee notes the Government’s statement, in its reply to the comments of the NZCTU, that the Ministry of Labour is taking a strategic approach to reducing work-related injuries and fatalities under a National Action Agenda, released in March 2011, which highlights the five sectors which have the highest risks of ill health, injury or death. The Government states that each of these five sectors has a three-year Sector Action Plan in place. Under the Manufacturing Action Plan, a priority for action is at-risk groups, which include youth (aged 15–24), who are identified as needing more training and supervision. The Plan aims to deliver effective training and promote safe work practices to youth through targeted programmes. The Government states that it is not aware of a problem that the existing regulatory framework is being ignored, and that it considers the current legislation to be sufficient. Therefore, its action will focus on better training and awareness on safety issues, not non-observance. In this regard, the Committee further notes the Government’s statement that it considers that existing policy and legislative frameworks provide effective age thresholds for entry into work to ensure that children only engage in safe work. The Government states that while the specific legal restriction on types of work are only applicable to children under the age of 15, children between the age of 16 and 18 are protected by the general requirements of workplace health and safety legislation, which provides protection to all workers, regardless of age. The Government also states that it considers that the conditions of Paragraph 4 of the Worst Forms of Child Labour Recommendation, 1999 (No. 190), are met by the general duty on employers to ensure a safe working environment and to prevent exposure to hazards and by the duty on employers to ensure that employees have sufficient training and experience so that the work they are employed to do is not likely to cause them harm.

However, the Committee notes the information provided in the Government’s report concerning the number of claims for work-related injuries by persons 18 and under, and observes that the number of work-related injuries increased significantly with the age of the children; 724 more children aged 16 years made claims for work-related accidents than those aged 15, and 1,347 more children aged 17 made claims than those aged 16. Additionally the Committee notes the Government’s statement that the DoL Report of 2010 on New Zealand school children in paid employment summarizes the current state of knowledge about the risks that children are exposed to in employment. In this regard, the Committee recalls that the DoL Report of 2010 indicated that the current legislative protections, which rely on the employer to protect children under the age of 18 from workplace hazards, do not appear in practice to be fully and effectively protecting children from hazardous work.

Therefore, the Committee must once again express its serious concern that children between 15 and 18 years of age are allowed, in law and in practice, to perform the types of work which are clearly hazardous, as previously acknowledged by the Government and supported by the Department of Labour’s research. The Committee must therefore emphasize that, by virtue of Article 3(d), work which, by its nature and the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children under 18, constitutes one of the worst forms of child labour and that, by virtue of Article 1 of the Convention, member States are required to take immediate and effective measures to ensure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour as a matter of urgency. The Committee also recalls that Paragraph 4 of Recommendation No. 190 addresses the possibility of authorizing the employment or work of young persons as from the age of 16 under strict conditions that their health and safety be protected and that they receive adequate specific instruction or vocational training in the relevant branch of activity. The Committee therefore once again urges the Government to take immediate and effective measures to comply with Article 1 of the Convention, read with Article 3(d), to prohibit children under 18 years of age from engaging in hazardous and dangerous work. However, where such work is performed by young persons between 16 and 18 years of age, the Committee urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that such work is only carried out in accordance with the strict conditions set out in Paragraph 4 of Recommendation No. 190, namely that the health and safety of such young persons be protected and that they receive adequate specific instruction or vocational training in that activity. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this regard in its next report.

Article 4(1) and (3). Periodic revision of the types of hazardous activities prohibited to persons under 18 years of age. The Committee previously noted the Government’s indication that children under 18 years cannot work in any restricted areas of licensed premises, such as bars, licensed restaurants or clubs. However, it also noted the Government’s statement that, pursuant to sections 54–58 of the Health and Safety in Employment (HSE) Regulations, only employees under 15 years of age are prohibited from working in a number of high-hazard workplaces, such as in construction, logging and tree-felling operations, in work where goods are being manufactured and prepared for sale, in work with any machinery, lifting heavy loads or performing other tasks likely to be injurious to the employee’s health, night work and driving or riding any tractor or heavy vehicles. The Committee also noted the information from the Government’s report that research indicated that children represent a significant proportion of farm injuries, with nearly one fifth of all injuries on farms occurring involving children aged 15 and younger. The Government indicated that the majority of child fatalities occurred on farms, most typically with regard to children aged 10–14 years riding in vehicles to shift stock, and that this was being addressed through a safety campaign. The Committee further noted that the DoL Report of 2010 identified the construction, agriculture and hospitality industries as posing the most risk to young workers. The DoL Report of 2010 also identified some types of work which are more dangerous to young persons: by volume, working in shops (including petrol stations and supermarkets) and working in restaurants, takeaway outlets and other eateries. These types of activities were the largest contributors to workplace injuries and accounted for 60 per cent of injuries to schoolchildren in regular part-time work. Noting that the DoL Report of 2010 identified the sectors posing the most risk to young workers (construction, agriculture and hospitality), as well as the types of activities which are most injurious, the Committee reminded the Government that, pursuant to Article 4(1) and (3) of the Convention, the types of work which, by their nature or the circumstances in which they are carried out, are likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children, shall be determined by national laws or regulations, and that this list shall be periodically examined and revised as necessary, in consultation with the organizations of employers and workers concerned.

The Committee notes the Government’s statement that no amendments to the Regulations are currently being considered, but that any proposed change would entail a thorough consultation with a wide range of stakeholders, including employers’ and workers’ organizations. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on any measures taken or envisaged to undertake a periodic review of the list of types of hazardous work, as provided for in Article 4(3) of the Convention, including measures to regulate the types of hazardous work identified in the DoL Report of 2010, such as work in the construction, agriculture and hospitality industries.

Article 5 and Parts IV and V of the report form. Monitoring mechanisms and application of the Convention in practice. The Committee previously noted the Government’s statement that the Department of Labour was continuing to investigate workplace practices relating to persons between 16 and 18 years of age engaged in hazardous work. However, the Committee noted the Government’s statement that there had been no prosecutions in respect of the prohibition contained in the HSE Act or Regulations on engaging a young person under the age of 15 in hazardous work, despite the information in the DoL Report of 2010 that 17 per cent of students in part-time work under the age of 15 had reported a work-related injury in the previous year, some of which were serious injuries. The Committee requested the Government to provide information on the results of the investigations carried out by the Department of Labour on workplace practices related to persons between 15 and 18 years engaged in hazardous work.

The Committee notes the Government’s statement that no information is available in this regard, as the collection of age-related data is not considered to be sufficiently complete to draw reliable conclusions. However, the Committee also notes the information in the Government’s report concerning the number of claims for work-related injuries for the year 2009 (the most recent data available). In this regard, the Committee notes that there were 7,391 claims made for work-related injuries by persons 18 and under in 2009, including 992 claims made by children aged 16 and 2,339 claims made by children aged 17. The Committee further notes the Government’s statement that further research is being undertaken as a part of the Youth 2000 project. A health and well-being survey of secondary-school students is currently under way across 100 schools in the country (following similar surveys conducted in 2001 and 2007). The Government indicates that this survey will provide updated information on the types of paid work that school-aged children are involved in, and will include new questions to increase the understanding of their working conditions and health and safety outcomes. Noting the significant number of work-related injuries claims made by persons under 18, the Committee requests the Government to provide information regarding subsequent investigations carried out concerning these accidents, violations detected, prosecutions and penalties applied, with its next report. It also requests the Government to provide information from the survey undertaken from the Youth 2000 project concerning work performed by children under 18, particularly with regard to working conditions and health and safety outcomes. To the extent possible, all information provided should be disaggregated by age and sex.

The Committee is raising other points in a request addressed directly to the Government.