Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2020, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Viet Nam (Ratification: 2003)

Article 9(1) of the Convention. Penalties, labour inspectorate and application of the Convention in practice. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that administrative sanctions for child labour are provided for by several decrees. Moreover, section 296 of the Penal Code of 2015 provides for criminal liability for violations of the law on the employment of children. However, the Committee noted that a significant number of children were engaged in child labour in Viet Nam, and that the results of the labour inspection activities did not reflect the magnitude of child labour in Viet Nam, as indicated in the report of the Viet Nam National Child Labour Survey of 2012. The Committee also noted that the Government was in the process of preparing the second National Survey on Child Labour. The Committee urged the Government to strengthen the capacity and expand the reach of the labour inspectorate in its action to prevent and combat child labour. It also requested the Government to continue to provide information on the manner in which the Convention was applied in practice.

The Committee notes the Government’s information in its report that there are no cases of child labour detected during the labour inspection activities. However, according to information provided by 30 authorities at provincial and city level, 83 children who perform work illegally were detected. The Government also indicates that 120 labour inspectors from 63 Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs our have participated in capacity building activities on child labour. Training contents included relevant laws, inspection process and skills in inspecting the use of child labour. In addition, 286 inspectors at the local level received training on the detection, inspection and examination of child labour. The Committee also notes that, according to the National Child Labour Survey 2018, 1,031,944 working children were classified as involved in “child labour”, accounting for 5.4 per cent of the 5–17 year-old population and 58.8 per cent of working children. Among these, 519,805 children worked in heavy, dangerous and hazardous work with a rate of nearly 50.4 per cent of the total number of children in child labour. The Committee takes due note that, the total number of children involved in child labour has decreased compared with the results of the National Child Labour Survey 2012 (1.75 million). However, it notes with concern that there is still a significant number of children engaged in child labour, particularly in hazardous work. Moreover, the Committee observes that the results of the labour inspection activities do not reflect the magnitude of child labour in Viet Nam, as indicated in the report of the Viet Nam National Child Labour Survey of 2018. The Committee therefore urges the Government to intensify its efforts to ensure the effective elimination of child labour. It once again urges the Government to strengthen the capacity and expand the reach of the labour inspectorate in its action to detect, monitor, prevent and combat child labour, and to provide detailed information on the measures taken in this regard. The Committee also requests the Government to continue to provide information on the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice, including extracts from the reports of the inspection services and court decisions, as well as information on the number and nature of the violations reported and the sanctions imposed.

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