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The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in its reports. Furthermore, it notes with interest that on 25 October 2001 Honduras ratified the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1991 (No. 182), and that it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with ILO/IPEC on 5 July 2002.

Article 1 of the Convention. The Committee notes that a National Commission for the Elimination of Child Labour was established by Decree No. PCM-017-98. It also notes that a national plan of action for the gradual and progressive elimination of child labour has been adopted. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the activities of the National Commission and to provide a copy of Decree No. PCM-017-98 and of the national action plan.

Article 2. 1. Scope of application of the Convention. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that it would be necessary to amend section 2(1) of the Labour Code, which excludes from its scope agricultural and stockraising enterprises that do not permanently employ more than ten workers, so that the minimum age provisions contained in the Labour Code apply to this category of workers in agriculture and stockraising. The Committee notes with interest that, under the terms of section 119, the Code of Children and Young Persons of 1996 applies to all paid economic activities, as well as work carried out by children on their own account.

However, the Committee notes that, although section 284 of the Code of Children and Young Persons repealed certain provisions of the Labour Code, section 2(1) of the Labour Code respecting the exclusion of agricultural and stockraising enterprises not permanently employing more than ten workers is still in force. The Committee also notes that, by virtue of sections 4 to 6, the Regulations on child labour of 2001 only apply to contractual labour relations. The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to bring the provisions of the Labour Code and the Regulations on child labour of 2001 into line with those of the Code of Children and Young Persons of 1996 so as to give effect to the provisions concerning the minimum age for admission to employment or work in respect of all children, whether they work under a contract of employment or on their own account.

2. Minimum age for admission to employment or work. By virtue of section 199 of the Code of Children and Young Persons of 1996, work by children is subject to authorization by the Departments of Labour and Social Security of the Secretariat of State. Under the terms of section 120(2) of the Code of Children and Young Persons, a young person under 14 years of age may not in any event be permitted to work. The Committee notes that under section 32(1) of the Labour Code, young persons under 14 years of age and those who have reached this age who are still engaged in compulsory education cannot carry out a job. However, it notes that under section 32(2) of the Labour Code, the authorities responsible for supervising work by persons under 14 years of age may permit them to work, where they consider that it is indispensable to ensure their subsistence or that of their parents or brothers and sisters, and provided that it does not prevent them from completing their compulsory schooling. In its report in 2002, the Government states that cultural practices in the country make child labour legitimate at an age that is well below the minimum age for admission to employment or work specified when ratifying the Convention, namely 14 years. It adds that one example of this legitimacy lies in the fact that the national statistics on the economically active population are compiled as from the age of ten for both sexes. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures adopted or envisaged to ensure the application of the Convention by providing that no authorization to work shall be granted to any person under 14 years of age.

Article 3. 1. Prohibition of hazardous work for persons under 18 years of age. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes with interest that section 122 of the Code of Children and Young Persons of 1996 sets out a list of substances and environments establishing the hazardous types of work that must be prohibited for young persons under 18 years of age. It also notes that the prohibition from performing dangerous types of work applies to activities carried out in the context of an apprenticeship or vocational training programme.

2. Hazardous work from the age of 16 years. The Committee notes that, under section 122(3) of the Code of Children and Young Persons of 1996, young persons between 16 and 18 years of age may be permitted to perform hazardous types of work, as enumerated in the list contained in section 122(2) of the Code, where it is demonstrated that technical studies have been carried out by the National Institute of Vocational Training or a specialized technical institute under the responsibility of the Secretariat of State for Public Education. Under the terms of this provision, the Departments of Labour and of Social Security of the Secretariat of State shall ascertain, for each permit, that the work performed is not hazardous to the health or safety of the young person. The Committee also notes that section 123 of the above Code prohibits work that is likely to jeopardize the morals of persons under 18 years of age. It requests the Government to provide information on the application in practice of section 122(3) of the Code of Children and Young Persons, with an indication of the number of work permits granted to young persons between 16 and 18 years of age.

Article 9, paragraph 3. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes with interest that, in accordance with this provision of the Convention, section 126 of the Code of Children and Young Persons of 1996 provides that all employers recruiting young persons shall keep a register containing certain information, including the age, name and home address of such persons.

Part V of the report form. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in its report in 2000, according to which a study on child labour in Honduras, undertaken by UNICEF, the Honduran Institute of Children and Young Persons and the Secretariat of Labour and Social Security, indicates that around 358,877 children and young persons work, in both the formal and informal sectors. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice, including, for example, statistical data on the employment of children and young persons, extracts from the reports of the inspection services and information on the number and nature of the contraventions reported.

In its previous comments, the Committee noted that a Bill, of which a copy was attached to the Government’s report, was to be submitted for approval to the National Congress with a view to making the necessary amendments to the Labour Code to bring it into conformity with the requirements of the Convention. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on this Bill to revise the Labour Code, particularly with regard to its harmonization with the Code of Children and Young Persons of 1996 and the Regulations on child labour of 2001.