LAW AREA NAME : LABOUR LAWS SECTION NAME : CHILD ATROCITIES SUB SECTION NAME : CHILD LABOUR LAW

IN BRIEF

The Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act, 1986 bans employment of children in some fields. Most children get skin diseases or lung diseases like Tuberculosis (TB) due to inhaling the dust of materials like glass, wool etc. Such diseases can cause death or physical impairment. By the time children reach an age when they can work, their bodies are damaged beyond repair. Hence, employment of children in certain occupations has been prohibited. It regulates the conditions of work of children in places where they are allowed to work. Penalties have been laid down for violation of the provisions of this Act. LAW IN DETAIL.. A child below 14 years cannot be employed in certain occupations and processes. The list as per the act is given in the Forms section. In occupations or processes where they are permitted to work, the number of hours and period of work shall be as prescribed by the authorities for such establishments. Children cannot be made to work for more than 6 hours, including the time spent for waiting for work on any day. The work should not be more than 3 hours at one stretch. An interval of one hour at least must be given for rest The child is not permitted to work between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. Every child is entitled to a holiday of one whole day in a week

Every occupier who employs any child must give a written notice to the Inspector about the name and situation of the establishment, nature of work, person in actual management and address to which communications must be sent. He must maintain a register containing the name and date of birth of every child employee, hours and periods of work and intervals of rest, nature of work etc., He must display a notice at the place of work in English and in the local language an abstract of the prohibited occupations and processes and the penal provisions under this act. He is also responsible for the health and safety of his child employees. These regulations are not applicable to a person who runs any establishment with the help of his family.

PROCESS FOR SOLUTION . Complaint Under which Section ? Section 3: Prohibited occupations and processes Section 9: Notice to Inspector Section 11: Maintenance of register Section 12: Display of notice. Whom to complain / where to complaint? ..

Any person, police officer or Inspector may file a complaint before the Metropolitan Magistrate or a Magistrate of the First Class. Where the age of the child is under dispute, the Inspector will refer the matter to the prescribed medical authority. How to file the Case ? ... Where the Magistrate admits the complaint under this Act, a notice is sent to the Occupier who must file his reply to the plaint. After receiving evidence and hearing both the parties, the Court gives its verdict. Penalty under section 3 is imprisonment between 3 months up to 1 year or fine between Rs.10,000 to Rs.20,000 Repetition of an offence is punishable with imprisonment between 6 months up to 2 years Penalty under sections 9,11 & 12 is simple imprisonment up to 1 month or fine up to Rs.10,000 or both. What Next ? ..... Appeal to Sessions Court against the decision of the First Class Magistrate.

ALTERNATE REMEDIES.. The Human Rights Commission can be approached. A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) can also be filed in the High Court or Supreme Court to fight cases of Child Labour in prohibited employments.

A child below 14 years cannot be employed in the following occupations: 1. Transport of passengers, goods or mails by railway; 2. Cinder picking, clearing of an ash pit or building operation in the railway premises; 3. Work in a catering establishment at a railway station requiring the child to move from one platform to another or into or out of a moving train; 4. Work relating to construction of a railway station or any work close to or between railway lines; 5. A port authority within the limits of any port; 6. Work relating to selling of crackers and fireworks in shops with temporary licences; 7. Slaughter houses; 8. Automobile workshop and garages; 9. Foundries; 10. Handling of toxic or inflammable substances or explosives; 11. Handloom and power loom industry; 12. Mines and collieries; 13. Plastic units and fiberglass workshops. The prohibited processes are: 1. Bidi making 2. Carpet weaving 3. Cement manufacture 4. Cloth printing, dyeing and weaving 5. Manufacture of matches, explosives and fire-works 6. Mica-cutting and splitting 7. Shellac manufacture 8. Soap manufacture 9. Tanning 10. Wool-cleaning 11. Building and construction industry 12. Manufacture of slate pencils 13. Manufacture of products from agate 14. Manufacturing of processes using toxic metals and substances 15. Work involving hazardous processes and dangerous operations 16. Printing 17. Cashew and cashewnut descaling and processing 18. Soldering processes in electronics industries 19. Aggarbatti manufacturing 20. Automobile repairs and maintenance 21. Brick kilns and roof tiles units 22. Cotton ginning and processing 23. Detergent manufacturing 24. Fabrication workshops 25. Gem cutting and polishing 26. Handling of chromite and manganese ores 27. Jute textile manufacture and coir making

28. Lime kilns and manufacture of lime 29. Lock making 30. Welding and smelting 31. Manufacture of cement pipes and products 32. Manufacture of glass and glassware 33. Manufacture of dyes and dye stuff 34. Manufacture of burning coal 35. Manufacture of sports goods involving exposure to synthetic materials, chemicals and leather. 36. Moulding and processing of fiberglass and plastic 37. Oil expelling and refinery 38. Paper making 39. Potteries and ceramic industry 40. Polishing, moulding, cutting, welding and manufacture of brass goods 41. Process in agriculture 42. Saw mill processes 43. Sericulture processing 44. Skinning, dyeing and processes for manufacturing of leather and leather products 45. Stone breaking and crushing 46. Tobacco processing 47. Tyre making, repairing, re-treading and graphite benefaction 48. Utensils making 49. Zari making 50. Manufacture or handling of pesticides and insecticides.

PLEDGING OF CHILDREN The Children (Pledging of Labour) Act, 1933 punishes the father or mother or the guardian who pledges the child to rich employees for money. The father or guardian takes away all the wages in advance and the child works for the employer without receiving wages. The people who employ such children also commit an offence. EMPLOYMENT IN FACTORIES No child below the age of 14 can be allowed to work in any factory. The Factories Act specifically prohibits the same. A child between 14 and 18 years can work in a factory provided the employer gets a certificate from a doctor that the child is above 14 years of age and is physically fit to work. The working hours and other conditions of children in a factory are: No child can be employed in a factory for more than four and a half hours on any day. No child can be employed during the night time from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m Children cannot be employed in maximum more than two shifts No child can be made to work in more than one factory in a day. All children are entitled to one holiday in a week No young person below 18 years is allowed to clean or lubricate any part of an engine, motor or other appliances No young person below 18 years can work on a dangerous machine unless a) he has received sufficient training in work at the machine b)he is under the training of an expert of the machine

Whom/where to complain Any person can lodge a complaint in matters relating to working children. The complaint can be written or oral. It can be written on plain paper giving all the details of the offence. The complaint must be filed in the court of the Metropolitan Magistrate or a Magistrate of the First class.