Child Labor Violations Detected in 416 Workplaces in 9 Years

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The figures shared by the Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Services have shown that while the number of workplaces employing child laborers was 27 in 2017, this figure has increased to 61 in 2018.

Applying to the Presidency Communication Center (CİMER) to learn the number of child laborers in Turkey and the works undertaken by the Ministry to prevent child labor, Republican People's Party (CHP) İstanbul MP Ali Şeker has shared the answer of the ministry with the public.

The response of the ministry has shown that in the nine-year period since 2010, violations of "age of employment and ban on child employment" have been detected in 416 workplaces across Turkey.

The Ministry of Labor and Social Security developed a "National Program for Struggle Against Child Labor" and declared 2018 "the Year of Struggle Against Child Labor" to prevent child labor.

CLICK - TurkStat: Child Labor Increased in 2018

Responding to the application of Ali Şeker, the Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Services has shared the following table, which respectively shows the year, the number of workplaces where violations were detected and the amount of administrative fines imposed for violations:

Year Number of Workplaces with Violations Admin. Fines Imposed (TRY)
2010                   27                                                             22.303
2011                   29                                                             23.751
2012                   43                                                             50.234
2013                   49                                                             59.022
2014                   52                                                             69.286
2015                   33                                                             47.273
2016                   95                                                             146.626
2017                   27                                                             44.601
2018                   61                                                             108.094

'AKP is blind to children's rights'

Evaluating the response, Ali Şeker has underlined that according to the data recently shared by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat), while the labor force participation of children between the ages of 15 and 17 was 20.3 percent in 2017, it has exceeded 21.1 percent in 2018.

Şeker has commented further, "Our children should be spending their days at school desks, in playgrounds. But, as a result of the policies of the AKP [ruling Justice and Development Party] that are blind to children's rights, they become mothers by being forced to marry at an early age or their labor is exploited by being informally employed."

'67 children died in 2018'

According to a report released by the Laborers' Health and Occupational Safety (İSİG) Assembly, while 319 children lost their lives in occupational homicides from 2013 to the end of May 2018, 13 thousand 616 insured child laborers had occupational accidents between 2014 and 2016.

Within this context, reminding that 67 children also lost their lives in occupational homicides throughout 2018, CHP MP Şeker has said,

"The AKP does not have a realistic attitude in struggling against child labor. So long as a pseudo-struggle is waged against child labor, our children will continue falling victim to occupational homicides." (AÖ/SD)