Child labour
The Marshall Islands ratifies Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention
Marshall Islands is the 184th Member State to have ratified Convention No. 182.
On 13 March 2019, the Government of the Marshall Islands deposited with the International Labour Office the instrument of ratification of the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182), to mark the ILO’s first centenary.
With the ratification of Convention No. 182, the Republic of the Marshall Islands demonstrates its commitment to protect children from the worst forms of child labour, including slavery, forced labour and sale and trafficking of children, as well as the use of a child for prostitution, pornography and in illicit activities and hazardous types of work. The Government has taken significant measures to develop the legal framework for combating the worst forms of child labour, including by enacting the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons Act in 2017, providing for a specific penalty of a term of imprisonment and a fine for perpetrators of trafficking in children. The Government has also drafted a Labour Minimum Conditions Bill, which contains provisions on the minimum age of admission to work and of the types of work permitted to children. Moreover, the Government has taken measures to enhancing the education system, through the adoption of the Public School System Act (2013), providing for the free and compulsory enrolment and attendance of children from the age of five.
Convention No. 182 is the first ILO fundamental Convention ratified by the Marhsall Islands, and is testimony of the deep commitment of the Marshall Islands to advancing fundamental principles and rights at work and paving the way for the ratification of the other fundamental Conventions.
The Marshall Islands is joining forces to end child labour, with a view to attaining Target 8.7 of the Sustainable Development Goals, which calls on the global community to take immediate and effective measures to secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour, including the recruitment and use of child soldiers, and to end child labour in all its forms by 2025.
This ratification is an important step forward towards universal ratification, as only three Member States remain to ratify Convention No. 182, and brings us closer to the coverage of all the world’s children by Convention No. 182.
With the ratification of Convention No. 182, the Republic of the Marshall Islands demonstrates its commitment to protect children from the worst forms of child labour, including slavery, forced labour and sale and trafficking of children, as well as the use of a child for prostitution, pornography and in illicit activities and hazardous types of work. The Government has taken significant measures to develop the legal framework for combating the worst forms of child labour, including by enacting the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons Act in 2017, providing for a specific penalty of a term of imprisonment and a fine for perpetrators of trafficking in children. The Government has also drafted a Labour Minimum Conditions Bill, which contains provisions on the minimum age of admission to work and of the types of work permitted to children. Moreover, the Government has taken measures to enhancing the education system, through the adoption of the Public School System Act (2013), providing for the free and compulsory enrolment and attendance of children from the age of five.
Convention No. 182 is the first ILO fundamental Convention ratified by the Marhsall Islands, and is testimony of the deep commitment of the Marshall Islands to advancing fundamental principles and rights at work and paving the way for the ratification of the other fundamental Conventions.
The Marshall Islands is joining forces to end child labour, with a view to attaining Target 8.7 of the Sustainable Development Goals, which calls on the global community to take immediate and effective measures to secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour, including the recruitment and use of child soldiers, and to end child labour in all its forms by 2025.
This ratification is an important step forward towards universal ratification, as only three Member States remain to ratify Convention No. 182, and brings us closer to the coverage of all the world’s children by Convention No. 182.