53620
THE
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR
ORGANISATION
AND THE
PROTECTION OF CHILDREN
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR OFFICE
GENEVA (Switzerland)
1926
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THE ^INTERNATIONAL LABOUR
ORGANISATION AND THE
• PROTECTION OF CHILDREN
The protection of children against industrial
exploitation is one of the first fields in which labour
legislation was adopted. Many Governments had
adopted legislative measures to protect children
long before they thought of intervening in the
regulation of conditions of adult labour. Even
when liberty of individual contract between man
and man was still a dogma, official intervention
was considered necessary in the case of children,
who were so clearly unable to protect themselves.
And when the movement in favour of international
labour legislation began to develop, one of the
questions which appeared in the forefront of every
programme was the protection of children.
It was therefore natural that when the International
Labour Organisation was established by Part XIII
of the Peace Treaty in 1919, a prominent place
should have been given in its constitution to the
legal protection of children. The Preamble to
Part XIII lays down among the functions of the
Organisation " the protection of children, young
persons and women ", and also " the organisation
of vocational and technical education ". Further,
the Treaty, in Article 427, includes, among the
guiding principles for the work of the Organisation,
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" the abolition of child labour and the imposition
of such limitations on the labour of young persons
as shall permit the continuation of their education
and assure their proper physical development ".
In accordance with the obligations laid upon it
by the Peace Treaty, the International Labour
Organisation has from the start been actively
engaged in work on behalf of the legal protection
of children. At the first Session of the International
Labour Conference1, held at Washington in 1919,
important international agreements were reached
relating to different questions in this field, and
encouraging action has been taken by a number
of the States Members of the Organisation to incorporate these and later decisions of the Conference
in their national systems of legislation.
The problems to which an endeavour has thus
been made to find an international solution are
five, namely :
(1) the minimum age for the employment of
children ;
(2) the prohibition of night work for children
and young persons ;
(3) the protection of children and young persons
against dangerous and unhealthy employment;
1
To the International Labour Conference which, according
to the Peace Treaty, must be held at least once a year,
each of the fifty-six States Members of the Organisation has
the right to send four representatives — two Government
delegates and two delegates representing respectively the
most representative organisations of workers and employers.
2
(4) technical and vocational education, and
(5) social insurance.
MINIMUM AGE
A Draft Convention l adopted at the Washington
Conference in 1919 fixes the minimum age for the
industrial employment of children at 14 years.
The Convention lays down that children under the
age of 14 years shall not be employed on work in
any public or private industrial undertaking, other
than an undertaking in which only members of the
same family are employed. These provisions do
not, however, apply to work done by children in
technical schools, provided that such work is
approved and supervised by public authority. In
order to facilitate the enforcement of the provisions
of the Convention, every employer in an industrial
undertaking is required to keep a register of all
persons under the age of sixteen years employed
by him.
The age of 14 as the minimum age for admission
to employment was not determined without considerable discussion. Some members of the Conference
would have preferred 15, others would even have
1
A Draft Convention is an international agreement which
must be submitted to the " competent a u t h o r i t y " in
each country, in most cases the national Parliament, with
a view to ratification and application in national legislation.
Recommendations are general principles for the guidance
of national Governments in drafting national legislation,
or in issuing administrative orders.
3
liked to see 16 fixed as the minimum age, but the
Conference was impressed by the fact that the fixation
of the minimum age for the admission of children
to employment depends to a very considerable
extent on the educational facilities and regulations
in the various countries. If the educational regulations of a country provide that education shall
be continued only until the age of 12, then if employment is prohibited before the age of 14, it is clear
that the children will be left for two or three years
entirely without regular occupation or supervision.
If, as certain members of the Conference would
have wished, the minimum age for admission into
industry had been fixed at sixteen, it is certain
that in a very large number of countries in which
the sense of public responsibility for education is
not yet fully developed, this intervening period in
the child's life would have occurred with results
that could hardly be less than disastrous. The age
of 14 was therefore in the end unanimously adopted.
The principle of this protection was extended, by
the Second and Third Conferences held at Genoa
in 1920 and at Geneva in 1921, to employment at
sea and in agriculture.
In the case of agriculture, a Draft Convention
provides that children under the age of fourteen
years may not be employed in any public or private
agricultural undertaking save outside the hours
fixed for school attendance, and it is further laid
down that if they are employed outside the hours
of school attendance, the employment shall not be
4
such as to prejudice their attendance at school.
A certain elasticity is provided for purposes of practical vocational instruction by permitting the employment of children on light agricultural work,
and in particular on light work connected with the
harvest, provided that such employment shall not
reduce the total annual period of school attendance
to less than eight months. The general sense of
the Conference was that the matter of main importance was to prevent anjr prejudice to the education
of children owing to any duties that they might be
called upon to do on the farm. It was realised
by most of the practical agriculturists present that
young children might reasonably be called upon
outside the hours of school attendance to do small
tasks on the farm which would not only be of use
to them from the point of view of practical instruction
but would also be of material assistance to their
parents. It was also realised by the Conference
that direct legislation regarding the employment of
children in agriculture is very difficult to apply,
and that reliance for their protection has to be placed
mainly on the indirect application of other laws,
particularly the school attendance laws.
In the case of maritime employment, a Draft
Convention provides that children under the age of
14 years shall not be employed on vessels other than
vessels upon which only members of the same
family are employed. This stipulation does not,
however, apply to work done by children on schoolships or training-ships, provided that such work is
5
approved and supervised by public authority. In
order to facilitate the enforcement of the provisions
of the Convention, every shipmaster is required to
keep a register of all persons under the age of 16 years
employed on board his vessel.
Another Draft Convention adopted in 1921 extends
the protection of young persons at sea by stipulating
that young persons under the age of eighteen years
shall not be employed on vessels as trimmers or
stokers. To this general rule, there are certain
well-defined exceptions, such as employment on
school-ships or training-ships, vessels mainly propelled by other means than steam, and in the
Indian and Japanese coastal trade.
The general purpose of all these Conventions is
to ensure to the child, during his early years, freedom
from gainful employment, in order to safeguard not
only his physical development but also his educational
progress. It consecrates as a birthright to each
child the early years in which he will lay the physical.
intellectual and moral foundations of his future
usefulness as a member of industrial society.
NIGHT
WORK
With the same underlying object in view, children
and young persons are protected against employment
at night. A Draft Convention adopted at the
Washington Conference provides that young persons
under the ag^e of 18 shall not be employed during
the night in any public or private industrial under6
taking other than undertakings in which only
members of the same family are employed, with the
exception that in the case of certain specified
continuous process industries, young persons of
sixteen may be employed. It is important to
note that the term " night " is carefully defined
in the Convention : it signifies " a period of at
least eleven consecutive hours, including the interval
between ten o'clock in the evening and five o'clock
in the morning ".
The principle of this protection is extended, in a
modified form, to children and young persons employed in agriculture by a Recommendation adopted
at the Geneva Conference of 1921. This Recommendation makes a distinction between workers under
14 years of age, who are to be ensured a period of
rest compatible with their physical necessities and
consisting of not less than ten consecutive hours,
and those between 14 and 18, for whom the period
named is nine hours.
HEALTH
CONDITIONS
Existing legislation in various countries for the
protection of young persons in unhealthy industries
differs greatly as regards the industries covered,
the age limit, and the nature of the regulations.
With a view to securing uniformity on this question,
a Recommendation was adopted by the Washington
Conference which specifies in detail a number of
industrial processes., workers in which are particularly
7
exposed to the danger of lead poisoning. The
Recommendation urges that children and young
persons under the age of 18, as well as women,
should be prohibited from employment in these
processes. Jt also recommends that where the
employment of young persons and women is permitted in any process involving the use of lead
compounds, special regulations should be enforced,
including the periodic medical examination of the
persons employed in such processes.
The health of children and young persons employed
at sea forms the subject of a Draft Convention
adopted by the Conference of 1921. This Convention
stipulates that the employment of any child or
young person under eighteen years of age on any
vessel, other than vessels upon which only members
of the same family are employed, shall be conditional
on the production of a medical certificate attesting
fitness for such work. Continued employment at
sea is to be subject to a repetition of such medical
examination at intervals of not more than one
year, and the production of a further medical
certificate of fitness after each examination.
TECHNICAL AND VOCATIONAL EDUCATION
The problem of education, of which mention has
already been made in connection with the fixation
of the minimum age for employment in industry,
has so far engaged the attention of the Conference
only to a limited extent. Only one " legislative "
8
decision has been reached in this field, a Recommendation relating to technical agricultural education
adopted by the Conference of 1921.
This has two main provisions. In the first place,
it urges each Member of the Organisation to endeavour to develop technical agricultural education
and, in particular, to make such education available
to agricultural wage earners on the same conditions
as to other persons engaged in agriculture. In the
second place, it recommends Members of the Organisation to send a report to the International Labour
Olfice at regular intervals containing as full information as possible as to the administration of the
laws, the sums expended and the measures taken
in order to develop vocational agricultural education.
It may be noted that the main emphasis of the
first provision is that young agricultural wage
earners should be given as much opportunity to
obtain vocational agricultural education as any
others engaged in agriculture. The second provision
of the Recommendation is interesting, as indicating
the conviction of the Conference that the centralisation of authoritative information by the International Labour Office as to the details of the application of legislation already in force dealing with
vocational agricultural education would contribute
to the general world-wide fostering of agricultural
education.
The work of collecting information on technical
education and vocational guidance has been pursued
with energy in the Office. This information is
9
either included in one or other of the numerous
publications of the Office, or is sent to Governments,
employers' and workers' organisations, or other
bodies in response to special requests for information.
It may also be mentioned that the Conference,
at its Seventh Session, adopted a resolution which
" invites the Governing Body to instruct the Office
to undertake such preliminary work and necessary
investigations as it may deem appropriate with a
view to the possible discussion of the question of
the organisation of apprenticeship and of vocational
and technical education at one of the next following
Sessions of the Conference ".
SOCIAL
INSURANCE
Though the primary purpose of social insurance
is not the protection of children, its indirect influence
on the well-being of children is very great. For the
risks covered by social insurance — industrial accidents, sickness in general, occupational diseases, invalidity, old age, premature death, unemployment—
are the cause of terrible hardships to the families
of the workers.
A system of unemployment insurance, which
ensures that when the worker is unemployed he and
his family will not be entirely without resources, is
of the greatest importance for the health and wellbeing of the children. And the same is true of the
other social risks to which the worker is exposed.
Social insurance schemes, in most cases, make
10
special provision for the payment of benefits in
respect of dependent children.
In this wide field, the International Labour
Organisation has not been inactive. Of the first
seven Sessions of the Conference, five have dealt
with some problem connected with social insurance,
and at the Seventh Session this formed the principal
question before the Conference. By thus protecting
the worker against the risks inherent in life and
work, the International Labour Organisation is
doing what it can to ensure to all children a minimum
of material well-being.
APPLICATION OF THE DECISIONS OF THE
CONFERENCE
The Draft Conventions and Recommendations of
which a brief outline has been given above constitute,
it will be generally agreed, no small contribution
to the ideals of international labour legislation.
But, it may be asked, to what extent have the
Draft Conventions and Recommendations of the
Conference actually been incorporated in national
systems of legislation ? How far are they really
applied, and how far do they really influence the
conditions of life and labour of children and young
persons ? As an answer to that question certain
figures may be given.
The Convention on the minimum age for admission
of children to industrial employment has been
ratified by 13 States, namely, Belgium, Bulgaria,
11
Chile, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Estonia, Great
Britain, Greece, Irish Free State, Latvia, Poland,
Roumania, and Switzerland. In 4 other countries,
Finland, Italy, Japan, and the Netherlands, ratification has already been authorised by the competent
authority. The Convention prohibiting the night
work of young persons has been ratified by 17
countries, namely, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Chile,
Denmark, Estonia, France, Great Britain, Greece,
India, Irish Free State, Italy, Latvia, Netherlands,
Poland, Roumania, and Switzerland. In addition,
ratification has been authorised in Finland and in
Hungary. Nine states have ratified the Convention
fixing the minimum age for employment in agriculture, and 15 the Convention providing for the
medical examination of young persons employed at
sea 1. In the case of all these Conventions, in certain
states additional to those mentioned, progress has
been made in varying degrees towards ratification.
RESULTS IN THE EAST
It is in the East, more perhaps than in Europe,
that the consequences of the work of the International Labour Organisation on behalf of the protection
of children are most striking. In some of the Asiatic
countries in which industrialisation is developing,
the lot of the child worker has, in more or less
recent years, been such as to awaken memories of
the worst that history has to tell of the sufferings
1
These data relate to 31 July 1926.
12
of the children during the industrial revolution.
Now, however, as a result of the work of the International Labour Organisation, a new day has begun
for the children of Asia. What actually has been
done ?
India has raised the minimum age for the employment of children from 9 years to 12 years in certain
industries. At the same time, India has reduced
the number of hours during which a child may be
employed in a factory from seven to six per day.
India has also prohibited the night work of young
persons, and has prohibited the employment of
young persons under 18 years of age on board ship.
Japan has been hardly, if at all, behindhand.
It has prohibited the employment of children under
the age of 12.. and provided that children over the
age of 12 may be admitted to employment only
if they have finished the course in the elementary
school. J a p a n has prohibited the employment of
children under the age of 14 years on board ship,
and has also prohibited the employment of any
child or young person under 18 years of age on board
ship unless he is provided with a medical certificate
attesting fitness for such work.
Both in Japan and India the legislation t h a t has
been passed in order to give etfect to this system of
child protection is in conformity with the decisions
of the International Labour Conference.
In China and Persia, it the results achieved are
not so striking, they yet give ground for encouragement for the future. In China the Government
13
has issued a set of provisional factory regulations,
which conform to detailed recommendations of the
Washington Conference. These provide, inter alia,
for the prohibition of the employment of boys under
10 years of age and of girls under 12, the prohibition
of the night work of boys under 17 and of girls
under 18, and the limitation of the hours of work
of young persons to eight hours a day for boys
under 17 and for girls under 18. These are great
reforms, which, when their application is ensured,
should do much to remove the unsatisfactory
conditions of child labour in China. In Shanghai
the municipality appointed in 1923 a Child Labour
Commission, whose unanimous recommendations,
when adopted by the Settlement, should render impossible the industrial exploitation of young children.
The Persian Government has not yet taken any
legislative action in accordance with the decisions
of the International Labour Conference. It has,
however, shown evidence of its interest in the desirability of improving industrial conditions by the
readiness with which it gave effect to suggestions of
the International Labour Office in reference to the
conditions under which children were employed in
the carpet-weaving industry in Kerman and the
adjacent villages. According to the evidence of the
British consular authorities, very young children
were being employed for an excessive number of
hours in workshops under sanitary conditions of the
most appalling kind.
As a result of the intervention ot the International
14
Labour Office, the Persian Government ordered the
Kerman local authorities to enforce the following,
among other, rules : (a) eight-hour day ; (b) prohibition of employment of children under 10. These
measures have been confirmed, and in some respects
extended, by a Decree promulgated by the Governor
of the Province of Kerman in accordance with the
decision of the Persian Government.
CO-OPERATION WITH OTHER
ORGANISATIONS.
The International Labour Organisation, in endeavouring to carry out the tasks in the field of child
protection entrusted to it by the Peace Treaty, has
worked in close co-operation with other organisations
striving for the well-being of children and young
persons. The Office is represented on the League
of Nations Advisory Commission for the Protection
and Welfare of Children and Young People.
The Office is also in close touch with various
international associations which are concerned with
child protection, such as the International Association for the Promotion of Child Welfare, the International League of Red Cross Societies, the International Organisation of Boy Scouts and Girl Guides,
and the International "Save the Children" Fund.
The protection of childhood is a vast field, wide
enough to absorb a multitude of workers, and the
International Labour Office has always been anxious
to co-operate with all who are inspired with the spirit
of ardent sympathy for toiling and suffering childhood on which alone truly great work can be based.
•*5
APPENDIX I
Draft Convention fixing the Minimum Age for Admission
of Children to Industrial Employment
The General Conference of the International Labour
Organisation of the League of Nations,
Having been convened by the Government of the
United States of America at Washington, on the
29th day of October 1919, and
Having decided upon the adoption of certain proposals with regard to the " employment of children :
minimum age of employment, " which is part of the
fourth item in the agenda for the Washington meeting
of the Conference, and
Having determined that these proposals shall take
the form of a draft international convention,
adopts the following Draft Convention for ratification by
the Members of the International Labour Organisation, in
accordance with the Labour Part of the Treaty of Versailles
of 28 June 1919, and of the Treaty of St. Germain of 10
September 1919 :
ARTICLE I
For the purpose of this Convention, the term "industrial
undertaking" includes particularly :
(a) Mines, quarries, and other works for the extraction
of minerals from the earth.
(b) Industries in which articles are manufactured,
altered, cleaned, repaired, ornamented, finished, adapted
for sale, broken up or demolished, or in which materials are
transformed ; including shipbuilding, and the generation,
transformation, and transmission of electricity and motive
power of any kind.
(c) Construction, reconstruction, maintenance, repair,
alteration, or demolition of any building, railway, tramway,
harbour, dock, pier, canal, inland waterway, road, tunnel,
bridge, viaduct, sewer, drain, well, telegraphic or telephonic
installation, electrical undertaking, gas work, waterwork,
or other work of construction, as well as the preparation
for or laying the foundations of any such work or structure.
(d) Transport of passengers or goods by road or rail
or inland waterway, including the handling of goods at
docks, quays, wharves, and warehouses, but excluding
transport by hand.
16
The competent authority in each country shall define the
line of division which separates industry from commerce and
agriculture.
ARTICLE 2
Children under the age of fourteen years shall not be employed or work in any public or private industrial undertaking, or in any branch thereof, other than an undertaking
in which only members of the same family are employed.
ARTICLE 3
The provisions of Article 2 shall not apply to work done
by children in technical schools, provided that such work is
approved and supervised by public authority.
ARTICLE 4
In order to facilitate the enforcement of the provisions of
this Convention, every employer in an industrial undertaking
shall be required to keep a register of all persons under the
age of sixteen years employed by him, and of the dates of
their births.
ARTICLE 5
In connection with the application of this Convention t o
Japan, the following modifications of Article 2 may be made;
(a) Children over twelve years of age may be admitted
into employment if they have finished the course in the
elementary school ;
(b) As regards children between the ages of twelve and
fourteen already employed, transitional regulations may be
made.
The provision in the present Japanese law admitting
children under the age of twelve years to certain light and
easy employments shall be repealed.
ARTICLE 6
The provisions of Article 2 shall not apply to India, but in
India children under twelve years of age shall not be employed,
(a) In manufactories working with power and employing
more than ten persons ;
(b) In mines, quarries, and other works for the extraction
of minerals from the earth :
(c) In the transport of passengers or goods, or mails, by
rail, or in the handling of goods at docks, quays, and
wharves, but excluding transport by hand.
17
ARTICLE 7
The formal ratifications of this Convention, under the
conditions set forth in Part X I I I of the Treaty of Versailles
of 28 June 1919, and of the Treaty of St.Germain of 10
September 1919, shall be communicated to the SecretaryGeneral of the League of Nations for registration.
ARTICLE 8
Each Member of the International Labour Organisation
which ratifies this Convention engages to apply it to its
colonies, protectorates, and possessions which are not
fully self-governing :
(a) Except where owing to the local conditions its provisions are inapplicable : or
(b) Subject to such modifications as may be necessary
to adapt its provisions to local conditions.
Each Member shall notify to the International Labour
Office the action taken in respect to each of its colonies,
protectorates, and possessions which are not fully selfgoverning.
ARTICLE 9
As soon as the ratifications of two Members of the International Labour Organisation have been registered with the
Secretariat, the Secretary-General of the League of Nations
shall so notify all the Members of the International Labour
Organisation.
ARTICLE
10
This Convention shall come into force at the date on
which such notification is issued by the Secretary-General
of the League of Nations, but it shall then be binding only
upon those Members which have registered their ratifications
with the Secretariat. Thereafter this Convention will come
into force for any other Member at the date on which its
ratification is registered with the Secretariat.
ARTICLE
II
Each Member which ratifies this Convention agrees to
bring its provisions into operation not later than 1 July
1922, and to take such action as may be necessary to make
these provisions effective.
ARTICLE
12
A Member which has ratified this Convention may
denounce it after the expiration of ten years from the date
on which the Convention first comes into force, by an act
1.8
communicated to the Secretary-General of the League of
Nations for registration. Such denunciation shall not take
effect until one year after the date on which it is registered
with the Secretariat.
ARTICLE
13
At least once in ten years, the Governing Body of the
International Labour Office shall present to the General
Conference a report on the working of this Convention, and
shall consider the desirability of placing on the agenda of
the Conference the question of its revision or modification.
ARTICLE
14
The French and English texts of this Convention shall
both be authentic.
APPENDIX I A
Draft Convention fixing the Minimum
of Children to Employment
Age for
at Sea
Admission
The General Conference of the International Labour
Organisation of the League of Nations,
Having been convened at Genoa by the Governing
Body of the International Labour Office, on the 15th
day of June 1920, and
Having decided upon the adoption of certain proposals with regard to the "Application to seamen of
the Convention adopted at Washington last November
prohibiting the employment of children under 14 years
of age", which is the third item in the agenda for the
Genoa meeting of the Conference, and
Having determined that these proposals shall take
the form of a draft international convention,
adopts the following Draft Convention for ratification by
the Members of the International Labour Organisation, in
accordance with the Labour Part of the Treaty of Versailles
of 28 June 1919, of the Treaty of St. Germain of 10 September 1919, of the Treaty of Neuilly of 27 November
1919, and of the Treaty of the Grand Trianon of 4 June
1920 :
ARTICLE I
For the purpose of this Convention, the term "vessel"
includes all ships and boats, of any nature whatsoever,
19
engaged in maritime navigation, whether publicly
privately owned ; it excludes ships of war.
or
ARTICLE 2
Children under the age of fourteen years shall not be
employed or work on vessels, other than vessels upon which
only members of the same family are employed.
ARTICLE 3
The provisions of Article 2 shall not apply to work done
by children on school-ships or training-ships, provided that
such work is approved and supervised by public authority.
ARTICLE 4
In order to facilitate the enforcement of the provisions of
this Convention, every shipmaster shall be required to keep
a register of all persons under the age of sixteen years
employed on board his vessel, or • a list of them in the
articles of agreement, and of the dates of their births.
ARTICLE 5
Each Member of the International Labour Organisation
which ratifies this Convention engages to apply it to its
colonies, protectorates, and possessions which are not fully
self-governing :
(a) Except where owing to the local conditions its
provisions are inapplicable ; or
(b) Subject to such modifications as may be necessary
to adapt its provisions to local conditions.
Each Member shall notify to the International Labour
Office the action taken in respect to each of its colonies,
protectorates, and possessions which are not fully selfgoverning.
ARTICLE 6
The formal ratifications of this Convention under the
conditions set forth in Part X I I I of the Treaty of Versailles
of 28 June 1919, of the Treaty of St. Germain of 10 September 1919, of the Treaty of Neuilly of 27 November
1919, and of the Treaty of the Grand Trianon of 4 June
1920, shall be communicated to the Secretary-General of
the League of Nations for registration.
ARTICLE 7
As soon as the ratifications of two Members of the International Labour Organisation have been registered with the
20
Secretariat, the Secretary-General of the League of Nations
shall so notify all the Members of the International Labour
Organisation.
ARTICLE 8
This Convention shall come into force at the date on
which such notification is issued by the Secretary-General of
the League of Nations, but it shall then be binding only
upon those Members which have registered their ratifications with the Secretariat. Thereafter this Convention will
come into force for any other Member at the date on which
its ratification is registered with the Secretariat.
ARTICLE 9
Subject to the provisions of Article 8, each Member which
ratifies this Convention agrees to bring its provisions into
operation not later than 1 July 1922, and to take such
action as may be necessary to make these provisions effective.
ARTICLE
10
A Member which has ratified this Convention may denounce it after the expiration of ten years from the date on
which the Convention first comes into force, by an act
communicated to the Secretary-General of the League of
Nations for registration. Such denunciation shall not take
effect until one year after the date on which it is registered
with the Secretariat.
ARTICLE
II
At least in ten years, the Governing Body of the International Labour Office shall present to the General Conference a report on the working of this Convention, and shall
consider the desirability of placing on the agenda of the
Conference the question of its revision or modification.
ARTICLE
12
The French and English texts of this Convention shall both
be authentic.
APPENDIX I B
Draft Convention concerning the Age for Admission
Children to Employment in Agriculture
of
The General Conference of the International Labour
Organisation of the League of Nations,
21
Having been convened at Geneva by the Governing
Body of the International Labour Office, and having
met in its Third Session on 25 October 1921, and
Having decided upon the adoption of certain proposals with regard to the employment of children in
agriculture during compulsory school hours, which is
included in the third item of the agenda of the Session,
and
Having determined t h a t these proposals shall take
the form of a draft international convention,
adopts the following Draft Convention for ratification by
the Members of the International Labour Organisation, in
accordance with the provisions of Part X I I I of the Treaty
of Versailles and of the cprresponding Parts of the other
Treaties of Peace :
ARTICLE I
Children under the age of fourteen years may not be employed or work in any public or private agricultural undertaking, or in any branch thereof, save outside the hours
fixed for school attendance. If they are employed outside
the hours of school attendance, the employment shall
not be such as to prejudice their attendance at school.
ARTICLE 2
For purposes of practical vocational instruction the
periods and the hours of school attendance may be so
arranged as to permit the employment of children on light
agricultural work and in particular on light work connected
with the harvest, provided that such employment shall
not reduce the total annual period of school attendance
to less than eight months.
ARTICLE 3
The provisions of Article 1 shall not apply to work done
"by children in technical schools, provided that such work is
approved and supervised by public authority.
ARTICLE 4
The formal ratifications of this Convention under the
conditions set forth in Part X I I I of the Treaty of Versailles,
and of the corresponding Parts of the other Treaties of
Peace, shall be communicated to the Secretary-General of
the League of Nations for registration.
ARTICLE 5
This Convention shall come into force at the date on
which the ratifications of two Members of the International
22
Labour Organisation have been registered by the SecretaryGeneral.
I t shall be binding only upon those Members whose ratifications have been registered with the Secretariat.
Thereafter, the Convention shall come into force for any
Member at the date on which its ratification has been
registered with the Secretariat.
ARTICLE 6
As soon as the ratificatons of two Members of the International Labour Organisation have been registered with the
Secretariat, the Secretary-General of the League of Nations
shall so notify all the Members of the International Labour
Organisation. He shall likewise notify them of the registration of ratifications which may be communicated subsequently by other Members of the Organisation.
ARTICLE 7
Subject to the provisions of Article 5, each Member which
ratifies this Convention agrees to bring the provisions of
Articles 1, 2 and 3 into operation not later than 1 January
1924 and to take such action as may be necessary to make
these provisions effective.
ARTICLE 8
Each Member of the International Labour Organisation
which ratifies this Convention engages to apply it to its
colonies, possessions and protectorates, in accordance with
the provisions of Article 421 of the Treaty of Versailles and
of the corresponding Articles of the other Treaties of Peace.
ARTICLE 9
A Member which has ratified this Convention may
denounce it after the expiration of ten years from the date
on which the Convention first came into force, by an act
communicated to the Secretary-General of the League of
Nations for registration. Such denunciation shall not take
effect until one year after the date on which it is registered
with the Secretariat.
ARTICLE 10
At least once in ten years, the Governing Body of the
International Labour Office shall present to the General
Conference a report on the working of this Convention and
shall consider the desirability of placing on the agenda of
the Conference the question of its revision or modification.
23
ARTICLE
ir
The French and English texts of this Convention shall
both be authentic.
APPENDIX Ic
Recommendation concerning Night Work of Children and
Young Persons in Agriculture
The General Conference of the International Labour
Organisation of the League of Nations,
Having been convened at Geneva by the Governing
Body of the International Labour Office, and having
met in its Third Session on 25 October 1921, and
Having decided upon the adoption of certain proposals with regard to the employment of children and
young persons in agriculture during the night, which is
included in the third item of the agenda of the Session,
and
Having decided that these proposals shall take the
form of a recommendation,
adopts the following Recommendation, to be submitted to
the Members of the International Labour Organisation for
consideration with a view to effect being given to it by
national legislation or otherwise, in accordance with the
provisions of Part X I I I of the Treaty of Versailles and of
the corresponding Parts of the other Treaties of Peace :
The General Conference of the International Labour
Organisation recommends :
I
That each Member of the International Labour Organisation take steps to regulate the employment of children
under the age of fourteen years in agricultural undertakings
during the night, in such a way as to ensure to them a period
of rest compatible with their physical necessities and consisting of not less than ten consecutive hours.
II
That each Member of the International Labour Organisation take steps to regulate the employment of young
persons between the ages of fourteen and eighteen years in
agricultural undertakings during the night, in such a way
as to ensure to them a period of rest compatible with their
physical necessities and consisting of not less than nine
consecutive hours.
24
APPENDIX I D
Draft Convention fixing the Minimum A ge for the A dmission
of Young Persons to Employment as Trimmers or Stokers
The General Conference of the International Labour
Organisation of the League of Nations,
Having been convened et Geneva by the Governing
Body of the International Labour Office, and having
met in its Third Session on 25 October 1921, and
Having decided upon the adoption of certain proposals
with regard to the prohibition of the employment of
any person under the age of 18 years as trimmer or
stoker, which is included in the eighth item of the
agenda of the Session, and
Having determined that these proposals shall take
the form of a draft international convention,
adopts the following Draft Convention for ratification by
the Members of the International Labour Organisation, in
accordance with the provisions of Part X I I I of the Treaty
of Versailles and of the corresponding Parts of the other
Treaties of Peace ;
ARTICLE I
For the purpose of this Convention, the term "vessel"'
includes all ships and boats, of any nature whatsoever,
engaged in maritime navigation, whether publicly or
privately owned ; it excludes ships of war.
ARTICLE 2
Young persons under the age of eighteen years shall not
be employed or work on vessels as trimmers or stokers.
ARTICLE 3
The provisions of Article 2 shall not apply :
(a) to work done by young persons on school-ships or
training-ships, provided that such work is approved and
supervised by public authority ;
(b) to the employment of young persons on vessels
mainly propelled by other means than steam ;
(c) to young persons of not less than sixteen years of
age, who, if found physically fit after medical examination,
may be employed as trimmers or stokers on vessels exclusively engaged in the coastal trade of India and of Japan,
subject to regulations made after consultation with the most
25
representative organisations of employers and workers in
those countries.
ARTICLE 4
When a trimmer or stoker is required in a port where
young persons of less than eighteen years of age only are
available, such young persons may be employed and in
that case it shall be necessary to engage two young persons
in place of the trimmer or stoker required. Such young
persons shall be at least sixteen years of age.
ARTICLE 5
In order to facilitate the enforcement of the provisions of
this Convention, every shipmaster shall be required to keep
a register of all persons under the age of eighteen years
employed on board his vessel, or a list of them in the articles
of agreement, and of the dates of their births.
ARTICLE 6
Articles of agreement shall contain a brief summary of
the provisions of this Convention.
ARTICLE 7
The formal ratifications of this Convention under the
conditions set forth in Part X I I I of the Treaty of Versailles
and of the corresponding Parts of the other Treaties of
Peace shall be communicated to the Secretary-General of
the League of Nations for registration.
ARTICLE 8
This Convention shall come into force at the date on
which the ratifications of two Members of the International
Labour Organisation have been registered by the SecretaryGeneral.
I t shall be binding only upon those Members whose
ratifications have been registered with the Secretariat.
Thereafter, the Convention shall come into force for any
Member at the date on which its ratification has been
registered with the Secretariat.
ARTICLE 9
As soon as the ratifications of two Members of the International Labour Organisation have been registered with the
Secretariat, the Secretary-General of the League of Nations
shall so notify all the Members of the International Labour
Organisation. He shall likewise notify them of the registra26
tion of ratifications which may be communicated subsequently by other Members of the Organisation.
ARTICLE IO
Sublect to the provisions of Article 8, each Member which
ratifies this Convention agrees to bring the provisions of
Articles i, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 into operation not later than 1
January 1924 and to take such action as may be necessary
to make these provisions effective.
ARTICLE
II
Each Member of the International Labour Organisation
which ratifies this Convention engages to apply it t o its
colonies, possessions and protectorates, in accordance with
the provisions of Article 421 of the Treaty of Versailles and
of the corresponding Articles of the other Treaties of Peace.
ARTICLE
12
A Member which has ratified this Convention may
denounce it after the expiration of ten years from the date
on which the Convention first comes into force, by an act
communicated to the Secretary-General of the League of
Nations for registration. Such denunciation shall not take
effect until one year after the date on which it is registered
with the Secretariat.
ARTICLE
13
At least once in ten years, the Governing Body of the
International Labour Office shall present to the General
Conference a report on the working of this Convention and
shall consider the desirability of placing on the agenda of
the Conference the question of its revision or modification.
ARTICLE
14
The French and English texts of this Convention shall
both be authentic.
APPENDIX II
Draft
Convention concerning the Night Work of
Persons Employed in Industry
Young
The General Conference of the International Labour
Organisation of the League of Nations,
Having been convened by the Government of the
27
United States of America at Washington, on the 29th
day of October 1919, and
St?8]
H a v i n g decided u p o n t h e adoption of certain proposals
with regard to the "employment of children : during the
night", which is part of the fourth item in the agenda
for the Washington meeting of the Conference, and
Having determined that these proposals shall take
the form of a draft international convention,
adopts the following Draft Convention for ratification by
the Members of the International Labour Organisation, in
accordance with the Labour Part of the Treaty of Versailles
of 28 June 1919, and of the Treaty of St. Germain of 10
September 1919 :
ARTICLE I
For the purpose of this Convention, the term "industrial
undertaking" includes particularly :
(a) Mines, quarries, and other works for the extraction of
minerals from the earth.
(b) Industries in which articles are manufactured, altered,
cleaned, repaired, ornamented, finished, adapted for sale,
broken up, or demolished, or in which materials are transformed ; including shipbuilding, and the generation, transformation, and transmission of electricity or motive power
of any kind.
(c) Construction, reconstruction, maintenance, repair,
alteration, or demolition of any building, railway, tramway,
harbour, dock, pier, canal, inland waterway, road, tunnel,
bridge, viaduct, sewer, drain, well, telegraphic or telephonic
installation, electrical undertaking, gas work, waterwork, or
other work of construction as well as the preparation for
or laying the foundations of any such work or structure.
(d) Transport of passengers or goods by road or rail,
including the handling of goods at docks, quays, wharves,
and warehouses, but excluding transport by hand.
« >
The competent authority in each country shall define
the line of division which separates industry from commerce and agriculture.
ARTICLE 2
Young persons under eighteen years of age shall not be
employed during the night in any public or private industrial undertaking, or in any branch thereof, other than an
undertaking in which only members of the same family
are employed, except as hereinafter provided for.
*kA
Young persons over the age of sixteen may be employed
during the night in the following industrial undertakings
28
on work which, by reason of the nature of the process, is
required to be carried in continuously day and night :
(a) Manufacture of iron and steel : process in which
reverberatory or regenerative furnaces are used, and galvanising of sheet metal or wire (except the pickling process).
(b) Glass works.
(c) Manufacture of paper.
(d) Manufacture of raw sugar.
(e) Gold mining reduction work.
ARTICLE 3
For the purpose of this Convention the term "night"
signifies a period of at least eleven consecutive hours,
including the interval between ten o'clock in the evening
and five o'clock in the morning.
In coal and lignite mines work may be carried on in the
interval between ten o'clock in the evening and five o'clock
in the morning, if an interval of ordinary fifteen hours,
and in no case of less than thirteen hours, separates two
periods of work.
Where night work in the baking industry is prohibited
for all workers, the interval between nine o'clock in the
evening and four o'clock in the morning may be substituted
in the baking industry for the interval between ten o'clock
in the evening and five o'clock in the morning.
In those tropical countries in which work is suspended
during the middle of the day, the night period may be
shorter than eleven hours if compensatory rest is accorded
during the day.
ARTICLE 4
The provisions of Articles 2 and 3 shall not apply to the
night work of young persons between the ages of sixteen
and eighteen years in case of emergencies which could not
have been controlled or foreseen, which are not of a periodical character, and which interfere with the nor al working
of the industrial undertaking.
ARTICLE 5
In the application of this Convention to Japan, until 1
July 1925, Article 2 shall apply only to young persons under
fifteen years of age and thereafter it shall apply only to
young persons under sixteen years of age.
ARTICLE 6
In the application of this Convention to India, the term
"industrial undertaking" shall include only "factories" as
2(J
defined in the Indian Factory Act, and Article 2 shall
not apply to male young persons over fourteen years of
age.
ARTICLE 7
The prohibition of night work may be suspended by the
Government, for young persons between the ages of sixteen
and eighteen years, when in case ofserious emergency the
public interest demands it.
ARTICLE 8
The formal ratifications of this Convention, under the
conditions set forth in Part X I I I of the Treaty of Versailles
of 28 June 1919, and of the Treaty of St. Germain of 10
September 1919, shall be communicated to the SecretaryGeneral of the League of Nations for registration.
ARTICLE 9
Each Member of the International Labour Organisation
which ratifies this Convention engages t o apply it t o its
colonies, protectorates and possessions which are not fully
self-governing :
(a) Except where owing to the local conditions its
provisions are inapplicable ; or
(b) Subject to such modifications as may be necessary
to adapt its provisions to local conditions.
Each Member shall notify to the International Labour
Office the action taken in respect of each of its colonies,
protectorates and possessions which are not fully selfgoverning.
ARTICLE
10
As soon as the ratifications of two Members of the International Labour Organisation ha.ve been registered with the
Secretariat the Secretary-General of the League of Nations
shall so notify all the Members of the International Labour
Organisation.
ARTICLE
II
This Convention shall come into force at the date on
which such notification is issued by the Secretary-General
of the League of Nations, and it shall then be binding only
upon those Members which have registered their ratifications
with the Secretariat. Thereafter this Convention will come
into force for any other Member at the date on which its
ratification is registered with the Secretariat.
30
ARTICLE
12
Each Member which ratifies this Convention agrees to
bring its provisions into operation not later than 1 July
1922, and to take such action as may be necessary to make
these provisions effective.
ARTICLE
13
A Member which has ratified this Convention may
denounce it after the expiration of ten years from the date
on which the Convention first comes into force, by an act
communicated to the Secretary-General of the League of
Nations for registration. Such denunciation shall not take
effect until one year after the date on which it is registered
with the Secretariat.
ARTICLE
14
At least once in ten years the Governing Body of the
International Labour Office shall present to the General
Conference a report on the working of this Convention, and
shall consider the desirability of placing on the agenda of
the Conference the question of its revision or modification.
ARTICLE
15
The French and English texts of this Convention shall
both be authentic.
APPENDIX III
Recommendation concerning the Protection of Women and
Children against Lead Poisoning
The General Conference of the International Labour
Organisation of the League of Nations,
Having been convened at Washington by the Government of the United States of America on the 29th day
of October 1919, and
Having decided upon the adoption of certain proposals with regard to "women's and children's employment: unhealthy processes", which is part of the third
and fourth items in the agenda for the Washington
meeting of the Conference, and
Having determined that these proposals shall take
the form of a recommendation,
adopts the following Recommendation, to be submitted to
the Members of the International Labour Organisation for
31
consideration with a view to effect being given to it by
national legislation or otherwise, in accordance with the
Labour Part of the Treaty of Versailles of 28 June 1919,
and of the Treaty of St. Germain of 10 September 1919 :
The General Conference recommends to the Members of
the International Labour Organisation t h a t in view of the
danger involved to the function of maternity and to the
physical development of children, women, and young
persons under the age of eighteen years be excluded from
employment in the following processes :
(a) In furnace work in the reduction of zinc or lead ores.
(b) In the manipulation, treatment, or reduction of
ashes containing lead and in the desilverising of lead.
(c) In melting lead or old zinc on a large scale.
(d) In the manufacture of solder or alloys containing
more than ten per cent, of lead.
(e) In the manufacture of litharge, massicot, red lead,
white lead, orange lead, or sulphate, chromate or silicate
(frit) of lead.
(f) In mixing and pasting in the manufacture or repair
of electric accumulators.
(g) In the cleaning of workrooms where the above processes are carried on.
It is further recommended that the employment of
women and young persons under the age of eighteen years
in processes involving the use of lead compounds be permitted only subject to the following conditions :
(a) Locally applied exhaust ventilation, so as to remove
dust and fumes at the point of origin.
(b) Cleanliness of tools and workrooms.
(c) Notification to Government authorities of all cases
of lead poisoning and compensation therefor.'
(d) Periodic medical examination of the persons employed in such processes.
\/i. (e) Provision of sufficient and suitable cloak-room,
washing, and mess-room accommodation, and special
protective clothing.
(f) Prohibition of bringing food or drink into workrooms.
I t is further recommended that in industries where
soluble lead compounds can be replaced by non-toxic
substances, the use of soluble lead compounds should be
strictly regulated.
For the purpose of this Recommendation, a lead compound should be considered as soluble if it contains more
32
than, five per cent, of its weight (estimated as metallic
lead) soluble in a quarter of one per cent, solution of
hydrochloric acid.
APPENDIX III A
Draft Convention concerning the Compulsory Medical Examination of Children and Young Persons employed at Sea
The General Conference of the International Labour
Organisation of the League of Nations,
Having been convened at Geneva by the Governing
Body of the International Labour Office, and having
met in its Third Session on 25 October 1921, and
Having decided upon the adoption of certain proposals with regard to the compulsory medical examination of children and young persons employed at sea,
which included in the eighth item of the agenda of the
Session, and
Having determined that these proposals shall take
the form of a draft international convention,
adopts the following Draft Convention for ratification by
the Members of the International Labour Organisation, in
accordance with the provisions of Part X I I I of the Treaty
of Versailles' and of the corresponding Parts of the Treaties
of Peace :
ARTICLE I
For the purpose of this Convention, the term "vessel"
includes all ships and boats, of any nature whatsoever,
engaged in maritime navigation, whether publicly or
privately owned ; it excludes ships of war.
ARTICLE 2
The employment of any child or young person under
eighteen years of age on any vessel, other than vessels
upon which only members of the same family are employed,
shall be conditional on the production of a medical certificate
attesting fitness for such work, signed by a doctor who
shall be approved by the competent authority.
ARTICLE 3
The continued employment at sea of any such child or
young person shall be subject to the repetition of such
medical examination at intervals of not more than one
33
year, and the production, after each such examination, of
a further medical certificate attesting fitness for such
work. Should a medical certificate expire in the course of a
voyage, it shall remain in force until the end of the said
voyage.
ARTICLE 4
In urgent cases, the competent authority may allow a
young person below the age of eighteen years to embark
without having undergone the examination provided for
in Articles 2 and 3 of this Convention, always provided
t h a t such an examination shall be undergone at the first
port at which the vessel calls.
ARTICLE 5
The formal ratifications of this Convention under the
conditions set forth in Part X I I I of the Treaty of Versailles
and of the corresponding Parts of the other Treaties of
Peace shall be communicated to the Secretary-General of
the League of Nations for registration.
ARTICLE 6
This Convention shall come into force at the date on which
the ratifications of two Members of the International
Labour Organisation have been registered by the SecretaryGeneral.
I t shall be binding only upon those Members whose
ratifications have been registered with the Secretariat.
Thereafter, the Convention shall come into force for any
Member at the date on which its ratification has been
registered with the Secretariat.
ARTICLE 7
As soon as the ratifications of two Members of the International Labour Organisation have been registered with the
Secretariat, the Secretary-General of the League of Nations
shall so notify all the Members of the International Labour
Organisation. He shall likewise notify them of the registration of ratifications which may be communicated subsequently by other Members of the Organisation.
ARTICLE 8
Subject to the provisions of Article 6, each Member
which ratifies this Convention agrees to bring the provisions
of Articles 1, 2, 3 and 4 into operation not later than 1
January 1924 and to take such action as may be necessary
to make these provisions effective.
34
ARTICLE 9
Each Member of the International Labour Organisation
which ratifies this Convention engages to apply it to its
colonies, possessions and protectorates, in accordance
with the provisions of Article 421 of the Treaty of Versailles
and of the corresponding Articles of the other Treaties of
Peace.
ARTICLE
10
A Member which has ratified this Convention may denounce it after the expiration of ten years from the date on
which the Convention first comes into force, by an act
communicated to the Secretary-General of the League of
Nations for registration. Such denunciation shall not take
effect until one year after the date on which it is registered
with the Secretariat.
ARTICLE
II
At least once in ten years, the Governing Body of the
International Labour Office shall present to the General
Conference a report on the working of this Convention and
shall consider the desirability of placing on the agenda of
the Conference the question of its revision or modification.
ARTICLE
12
The French and English texts of this Convention shall
both be authentic.
APPENDIX IV
Recommendation
concerning the Development of
Agricultural Education
Technical
The General Conference of the International Labour
Organisation of the League of Nations,
Having been convened at Geneva by the Governing
Body of the International Labour Office, and having
met in its Third Session on 25 October 1921, and
Having decided upon the adoption of certain proposals with regard to the development of technical
agricultural education, which is included in the
fourth item of the agenda of the Session, and
Having decided that these proposals shall take the
form of a recommendation,
35
adopts the following Recommendation, to be submitted to
the Members of the International Labour Organisation for
consideration with a view to effect being given to it by
national legislation or otherwise, in accordance with the
provisions of Part X I I I of the Treaty of Versailles and of
the corresponding Parts of the other Treaties of Peace :
The General Conference of the International Labour
Organisation recommends :
That each Member on the International Labour Organisation endeavour to develop vocational agricultural education and in particular to make such education available to
agricultural wage earners on the same conditions as to
other persons engaged in agriculture.
That each Member of the International Labour Organisation send a report to the International Labour Office
at regular intervals containing as full information as possible as to the administration of the laws, the sums expended,
and the measures taken in order to develop vocational
agricultural education.
56
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