US embassy cable - 04ANKARA4870

UNCLAS ANKARA 004870 
 
SIPDIS 
 
LABOR PLEASE PASS TO ARNOLD LEVINE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EIND, ELAB, ETRD, PHUM, SOCI, TU 
SUBJECT: 2004 CHILD LABOR UPDATE 
 
REF: A. STATE 163982 
 
     B. 03 ANKARA 5326 
 
1.  (U) In response to reftel A, Embassy Ankara submits this 
report to update its August 2003 report on child labor in 
Turkey. 
 
2. (U) In pursuing its EU candidacy Turkey continues to work 
to eliminate the worst forms of child labor (WFCL).  The 
information in this telegram builds upon material provided in 
reftel B.  In June 2003, for example, the Turkish government 
addressed this problem by enacting a more stringent labor 
code, including provisions related to child labor.  As 
planned, in 2004, the Ministry of Labor and Social Services 
(MOL) compiled a list of prohibited occupations for children 
(defined as persons who are up to fourteen, but not yet 
fifteen years old) and youngsters (those between fifteen and 
eighteen years old, but not yet nineteen years old); in May 
2004, the MOL published a list of permitted occupations for 
children and youth.  Asserting that the GOT's efforts have 
virtually eliminated instances of children between the ages 
of 12 and 14 years old engaged in the WFCL, the GOT's State 
Statistics Office (SSO) plans to eliminate employment data 
about this age group. 
 
3.  (U) SSO sampling conducted in 2004 indicates there are 
14,455,000 children between the ages of 7 and 17 years in 
Turkey; 12,224,000 or 84.6 percent are currently attending 
school.  At the same time, there are 7,405,000 children (10.6 
percent of the population) between the ages of 12 and 17 
years in Turkey; 6,494,000 children or 87.7 percent are not 
working, while 911,000, or 12.3 percent are employed.  Among 
working children, 52.5 percent were thought mostly to be 
working in agriculture on family farms during summer 
vacations.  23.7 percent worked in industrial jobs.  In 2003, 
769,000 children, or 14.4 percent of this age group, were 
employed. 
 
4.  (U) The GOT has increased the level of resource 
allocation to the Child Labor Unit (CLU) of the MOL, most 
notably in the allocation of larger office space and 
additional staff.  The CLU office currently consists of three 
people and there are plans to have twenty-five people working 
on this issue by the end of 2004.  The CLU is headed by a 
labor inspector who personally conducts on-site visits. 
 
5.  (U) While current legislation mandates fines and jail 
sentences for violations of child labor regulations, the CLU 
staff is using family support programs to provide vocational 
training, jobs and income assistance to parents, and at the 
same time educating the child and assisting with expenses for 
clothing, school supplies and transportation.  The CLU says 
that since 1992 it has helped  25,000 families involving 
50,000 children.  The Prime Ministry's Social Assistance and 
Solidarity Fund for Social Risk has 1800 branches throughout 
the country which are taking part in a World Bank-funded 
initiative to assist families in the campaign against the 
WFCL.  The CLU conducts information sessions for parents 
about the real costs of child labor.  The CLU distributed 
Turkish and English language pamphlets and booklets about its 
work to end WFCL in information sessions.  The Ministry of 
Education supports an Apprenticeship Training Center program 
combining work and classroom attendance intended primarily 
for youngsters who have completed primary school and are at 
least fifteen years old. 
 
6.  (U) In 2005, the MOL plans to embark on a two-phase, 
four-year 18 million euro joint project with the EU and the 
International Labor Organization to extricate children from 
the WFCL and send them to school.  At the same time, this 
project will pay all school expenses for students and provide 
vocational training for parents.  The GOT hopes to eradicate 
WFCL within four years under this program. 
 
7.  (U) The CLU looks forward to the announcement of the U.S. 
Department of Labor's Time-Bound grant to help it combat the 
WFCL. 
EDELMAN