Bureau of International Labor Affairs, Request for Information on Efforts by Certain Countries To Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child Labor, 63197-63199 [E7-21920]
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rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 216 / Thursday, November 8, 2007 / Notices
a finding of liability. ‘‘[A] proposed
decree must be approved even if it falls
short of the remedy the court would
impose on its own, as long as it falls
within the range of acceptability or is
‘‘within the reaches of public interest.’’
United States v. Am. Tel. & Tel. Co., 552
F. Supp. 131, 151 (D.D.C.
1982)(citations omitted) (quoting United
States v. Gillette Co., 406 F. Supp. 713,
716 (D. Mass. 1975)), aff’d sub nom.
Maryland v. United States, 460 U.S.
1001 (1983); see also United States v.
Alcan Aluminum Ltd., 605 F. Supp. 619,
622 (W.D. Ky. 1985) (approving the
consent decree even though the court
would have imposed a greater remedy).
To meet this standard, the United States
‘‘need only provide a factual basis for
concluding that the settlements are
reasonably adequate remedies for the
alleged harms.’’ SBC Commc’ns, 489 F.
Supp. 2d at 17.
Moreover, the Court’s role under the
APPA is limited to reviewing the
remedy in relationship to the violations
that the United States has alleged in its
Complaint, and does not authorize the
Court to ‘‘construct [its] own
hypothetical case and then evaluate the
decree against that case.’’ Microsoft, 56
F.3d at 1459. Because the ‘‘court’s
authority to review the decree depends
entirely on the government’s exercising
its prosecutorial discretion by bringing
a case in the first place,’’ it follows that
‘‘the court is only authorized to review
the decree itself,’’ and not to ‘‘effectively
redraft the complaint’’ to inquire into
other matters that the United States did
not pursue. Id. at 1459–60. As this Court
recently confirmed in SBC Commc’ns,
courts ‘‘cannot look beyond the
complaint in making the public interest
determination unless the complaint is
drafted so narrowly as to make a
mockery of judicial power.’’ SBC
Commc’ns, 489 F. Supp. 2d at 15.
In its 2004 amendments, Congress
made clear its intent to preserve the
practical benefits of utilizing consent
decrees in antitrust enforcement, adding
the unambiguous instruction ‘‘[n]othing
in this section shall be construed to
require the court to conduct an
evidentiary hearing or to require the
court to permit anyone to intervene.’’ 15
U.S.C. 16(e)(2). The language wrote into
the statute what the Congress that
enacted the Tunney Act in 1974
intended, as Senator Tunney then
explained: ‘‘[t]he court is nowhere
compelled to go to trial or to engage in
extended proceedings which might have
the effect of vitiating the benefits of
prompt and less costly settlement
through the consent decree process.’’
119 Cong. Rec. 24,598 (1973) (statement
of Senator Tunney). Rather, the
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procedure for the public interest
determination is left to the discretion of
the court, with the recognition that the
court’s ‘‘scope of review remains
sharply proscribed by precedent and the
nature of Tunney Act proceedings.’’
SBC Commc’ns, 489 F. Supp. 2d at 11.8
VIII. Determinative Documents
There are no determinative materials
or documents within the meaning of the
APPA that were considered by the
United States in formulating the
proposed Final Judgment.
Dated: October 23, 2007.
Respectfully submitted,
Karl D. Knutsen, Ryan Danks, Mitchell
Glende, Seth A. Grossman, N. Christopher
Hardee (DC Bar No. 458168), David Kelly,
Ihan Kim, Rebecca A. Perlmutter,
Attorneys, U.S. Department of Justice,
Antitrust Division, Litigation I Section, 1401
H Street, NW., Suite 4000, Washington, DC
20530, (202) 514–0976.
[FR Doc. 07–5586 Filed 11–07–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410–11–M
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Bureau of International Labor Affairs,
Request for Information on Efforts by
Certain Countries To Eliminate the
Worst Forms of Child Labor
The Bureau of International
Labor Affairs, United States Department
of Labor.
ACTION: Request for information on
efforts by certain countries to eliminate
the worst forms of child labor.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: This notice is a request for
information for use by the Department
of Labor in preparation of an annual
report on certain trade beneficiary
countries’ implementation of
international commitments to eliminate
the worst forms of child labor. This will
be the seventh such report by the
Department of Labor under the Trade
and Development Act of 2000 (TDA).
8 See United States v. Enova Corp., 107 F. Supp.
2d 10, 17 (D.D.C. 2000) (noting that the ‘‘Tunney
Act expressly allows the court to make its public
interest determination on the basis of the
competitive impact statement and response to
comments alone’’); S. Rep. No. 93–298, 93d Cong.,
1st Sess., at 6 (1973) (‘‘Where the public interest can
be meaningfully evaluated simply on the basis of
briefs and oral arguments, that is the approach that
should be utilized.’’); United States v. Mid-Am.
Dairymen, Inc., 1977–1 Trade Cas. (CCH) ¶ 61,508,
at 71,980 (W.D. Mo. 1977) (‘‘Absent a showing of
corrupt failure of the government to discharge its
duty, the Court, in making its public interest
finding, should . . carefully consider the
explanations of the government in the competitive
impact statement and its responses to comments in
order to determine whether those explanations are
reasonable under the circumstances.’’).
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Submitters of information are
requested to provide two (2) copies of
their written submission to the Office of
Child Labor, Forced Labor and Human
Trafficking at the address below by 5
p.m., December 7, 2007.
ADDRESSES: Written submissions should
be addressed to Tina McCarter at the
Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor and
Human Trafficking, Bureau of
International Labor Affairs, U.S.
Department of Labor, 200 Constitution
Avenue, NW., Room S–5317,
Washington, DC 20210 or may be sent
via e-mail to mccarter.tina@dol.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tina
McCarter or Charita Castro, Bureau of
International Labor Affairs, Office of
Child Labor, Forced Labor and Human
Trafficking, at (202) 693–4843, fax: (202)
693–4830, or via e-mail to mccartertina@dol.gov or castro.charita@dol.gov.
The Department of Labor’s international
child labor reports can be found on the
Internet at https://www.dol.gov/ILAB/
media/reports/iclp/main.htm or can be
obtained from the Office of Child Labor,
Forced Labor and Human Trafficking.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Trade
and Development Act of 2000 [Pub. L.
106–200] established a new eligibility
criterion for receipt of trade benefits
under the Generalized System of
Preferences (GSP), Caribbean Basin
Trade and Partnership Act (CBTPA),
and Africa Growth and Opportunity Act
(AGOA). The TDA amends the GSP
reporting requirements of the Trade Act
of 1974 (Section 504) [19 U.S.C. 2464]
to require that the President’s annual
report on the status of internationally
recognized worker rights include
‘‘findings by the Secretary of Labor with
respect to the beneficiary country’s
implementation of its international
commitments to eliminate the worst
forms of child labor.’’ Title II of the TDA
and the TDA Conference Report [Joint
Explanatory Statement of the Committee
of Conference, 106th Cong.2d.sess.
(2000)] indicate that the same criterion
applies for the receipt of benefits under
CBTPA and AGOA, respectively.
In addition, the Andean Trade
Preference Act (ATPA) as amended and
expanded by the Andean Trade
Promotion and Drug Eradication Act
(ATPDEA) (Pub. L. 107–210, Title XXXI)
includes as a criterion for receiving
benefits ‘‘[w]hether the country has
implemented its commitments to
eliminate the worst forms of child labor
as defined in section 507(6) of the Trade
Act of 1974.’’
DATES:
Scope of Report
Countries and non-independent
countries and territories presently
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 216 / Thursday, November 8, 2007 / Notices
eligible under the GSP and to be
included in the report are:
Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria,
Angola, Anguilla, Argentina, Armenia,
Bangladesh, Belize, Benin, Bhutan,
Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Botswana, Brazil, British Indian Ocean
Territory, British Virgin Islands,
Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia,
Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African
Republic, Chad, Christmas Island, Cocos
Islands, Colombia, Comoros, Democratic
Republic of the Congo, Republic of
Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Cote
d’Ivoire, Croatia, Djibouti, Dominica,
Dominican Republic, East Timor,
Ecuador, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea,
Eritrea, Ethiopia, Falkland Islands, Fiji,
Gabon, the Gambia, Georgia, Ghana,
Gibraltar, Grenada, Guinea, GuineaBissau, Guyana, Haiti, Heard Island and
MacDonald Islands, India, Indonesia,
Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan,
Kenya, Kiribati, Kyrgyz Republic,
Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Macedonia,
Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania,
Mauritius, Moldova, Mongolia,
Montenegro, Montserrat, Mozambique,
Namibia, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Niue,
Norfolk Island, Oman, Pakistan,
Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay,
Peru, Philippines, Pitcairn Island,
Russia, Rwanda, Saint Helena, Saint
Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint
Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Sao
´
Tome and Principe, Senegal, Serbia,
Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Solomon
Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Sri
Lanka, Suriname, Swaziland, Tanzania,
Thailand, Togo, Tokelau Island, Tonga,
Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey,
Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu,
Uganda, Ukraine, Uruguay, Uzbekistan,
Vanuatu, Venezuela, Wallis and Futuna,
West Bank and Gaza Strip, Western
Sahara, Republic of Yemen, Zambia,
and Zimbabwe.
Countries eligible or potentially
eligible for additional benefits under the
AGOA and to be included in the report
are: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina
Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde,
Chad, Republic of Congo, Democratic
Republic of the Congo, Djibouti,
Ethiopia, Gabon, the Gambia, Ghana,
Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho,
Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali,
Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique,
Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao
Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles,
Sierra Leone, South Africa, Swaziland,
Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia.
Countries potentially eligible for
additional benefits under the CBTPA
and to be included in the report are:
Barbados, Belize, Costa Rica, Dominican
Republic, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica,
Panama, Saint Lucia, and Trinidad and
Tobago.
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Countries potentially eligible for
additional benefits under the ATPA/
ATPDEA and to be included in the
report are: Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador,
and Peru.
In addition, the following countries
will be included in the report in view
of Department of Labor Appropriations,
2006, Conference Report, H.R. Rep. 109–
337 (2005): Bahrain, Chile, El Salvador,
Guatemala, Honduras, Morocco, and
Nicaragua.
Information Sought
The Department invites interested
parties to submit written information
relevant to the findings to be made by
the Department of Labor under the TDA,
for all listed countries. Information
provided through public submission
will be considered by the Department of
Labor in preparing its findings.
Materials submitted should be confined
to the specific topic of the study. In
particular, the Department’s Bureau of
International Labor Affairs is seeking
written submissions on the following
topics:
1. Whether the country has adequate
laws and regulations proscribing the
worst forms of child labor. Specifically,
DOL is seeking the following
information:
(a) What laws have been promulgated
on child labor, such as minimum age(s)
for employment or hazardous forms of
work? Are there exceptions to these
laws?
(b) What laws have been promulgated
on the worst forms of child labor, such
as forced child labor and trafficking or
child prostitution and pornography?
What is the country’s minimum age for
military recruitment?
(c) If the country has ratified
Convention 182, has it developed a list
of occupations considered to be worst
forms of child labor, as called for in
article 4 of the Convention?
2. Whether the country has adequate
laws and regulations as well as formal
institutional mechanisms for the
implementation and enforcement of
such laws and regulations; specifically:
(a) What legal remedies are available
to government agencies that enforce
child labor laws (criminal penalties,
civil fines, etc.), and are they adequate
to deter violations?
(b) To what extent are complaints
investigated and violations addressed?
(c) What level of resources does the
government devote to investigating
child labor cases? How many inspectors
does the government employ to address
child labor? How many child labor
investigations have been conducted over
the past year? How many have resulted
in penalties or convictions?
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(d) Has the government provided
training activities for officials charged
with enforcing child labor laws?
3. Whether social programs exist in
the country to prevent the engagement
of children in the worst forms of child
labor, and to assist in the removal of
children engaged in the worst forms of
child labor; specifically:
(a) What initiatives has the
government supported specifically to
prevent or withdrawn children from
exploitive work situations, such as
school scholarships conditioned on a
child’ withdrawal from child labor? (If
possible, please provide information on
funding levels for such initiatives.)
4. Whether the country has a
comprehensive policy for the
elimination of the worst forms of child
labor; specifically:
(a) Does the country have a
comprehensive policy or national
program of action on child labor or any
of its forms?
(b) Does the country specifically
incorporate child labor in poverty
reduction, development, educational or
other social policies or programs, such
as Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers,
etc? If so, to what degree has the country
implemented the policy and/or program
of action and achieved its goals and
objectives?
(c) Is education free in law and in
practice? Is education compulsory in
law and in practice?
Please note that although many antipoverty programs may have indirect
impacts on child labor, the TDA calls
for governments to take specific actions
to address the problem. Therefore, the
DOL’s report focuses on efforts that
name child labor as an explicit
objective, target group, or condition for
participation in government policies
and programs.
5. Whether the country is making
continual progress toward eliminating
the worst forms of child labor;
specifically:
(a) In what sectors/work activities/
goods are children involved and how
has this changed over the past year?
Information on age and gender of
working children, disaggregated by
industry/work activity/good, is
appreciated.
(b) To what extent are children
working in slavery or practices similar
to slavery, such as debt bondage,
serfdom, and forced or compulsory
labor? Please indicate industries where
this occurs and, if applicable, specific
goods that such children produce.
(c) To what extent are children
trafficked to work? Are children
trafficked for commercial sex or for
labor exploitation? Information on the
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 216 / Thursday, November 8, 2007 / Notices
industries into which children are
trafficked and the goods that they
produce in this situation is appreciated.
Are they trafficked across national
borders or within the country (specify
source, destination and transit
countries/regions/communities, if
possible).
Copies of any recent government
surveys on child labor are most
appreciated. In regard to education
statistics and to ensure comparability
across countries in the TDA report, DOL
will generally rely on UNESCO Institute
of Statistics data (https://
stats.uis.unesco.org/).
DOL greatly appreciates submission of
original sources. Information submitted
may include reports, newspaper articles,
or other materials. Governments that
have ratified ILO Convention 182 are
requested to submit copies of their most
recent article 22 submissions under the
Convention, especially those with
information on types of work
determined in accordance with Article
3(d) of the Convention.
rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES
Definition of Worst Forms of Child
Labor
The term ‘‘worst forms of child labor’’
is defined in section 412(b) of the TDA
as comprising:
‘‘(A) all forms of slavery or practices
similar to slavery, such as the sale and
trafficking of children, debt bondage
and serfdom and forced or compulsory
labor, including forced or compulsory
recruitment of children for use in armed
conflict;
(B) the use, procuring or offering of a
child for prostitution, for the production
of pornography or for pornographic
performances;
(C) the use, procuring or offering of a
child for illicit activities, in particular
for the production and trafficking of
drugs as defined in relevant
international treaties; and
(D) work which, by its nature or the
circumstances in which it is carried out,
is likely to harm the health, safety or
morals of children.’’
The TDA Conference Report noted
that the phrase, ‘‘work which, by its
nature or the circumstances in which it
is carried out, is likely to harm the
health, safety or morals of children’’ is
to be defined as in Article II of
Recommendation No. 190, which
accompanies ILO Convention No. 182.
This includes
‘‘(a) work which exposes children to
physical, psychological, or sexual abuse;
(b) work underground, under water, at
dangerous heights or in confined spaces;
(c) work with dangerous machinery,
equipment and tools, or which involves
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the manual handling or transport of
heavy loads;
(d) work in an unhealthy environment
which may, for example, expose
children to hazardous substances,
agents or processes, or to temperatures,
noise levels, or vibrations damaging to
their health;
(e) work under particularly difficult
conditions such as work for long hours
or during the night or work where the
child is unreasonably confined to the
premises of the employer.’’
The TDA Conference Report further
indicated that this phrase be interpreted
in a manner consistent with the intent
of Article 4 of ILO Convention No. 182,
which states that such work shall be
determined by national laws or
regulations or by the competent
authority in the country involved.
This notice is a general solicitation of
comments from the public.
Signed at Washington, DC this 5th day of
November, 2007.
Charlotte Ponticelli,
Deputy Undersecretary, Bureau of
International Labor Affairs.
[FR Doc. E7–21920 Filed 11–7–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510–28–P
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND
SPACE ADMINISTRATION
[(07–082)]
Notice of Information Collection Under
OMB Review
National Aeronautics and
Space Administration (NASA).
ACTION: Notice of information collection
under OMB review.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The National Aeronautics and
Space Administration, as part of its
continuing effort to reduce paperwork
and respondent burden, invites the
general public and other Federal
agencies to take this opportunity to
comment on proposed and/or
continuing information collections, as
required by the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–13, 44 U.S.C.
3506(c)(2)(A)).
DATES: All comments should be
submitted within 30 calendar days from
the date of this publication.
ADDRESSES: All comments should be
addressed to Desk Officer for NASA;
Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs; Room 10236; New Executive
Office Building; Washington, DC 20503.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Requests for additional information or
copies of the information collection
instrument(s) and instructions should
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63199
be directed to Mr. Walter Kit, NASA
PRA Officer, NASA Headquarters, 300 E
Street, SW., JE0000, Washington, DC
20546, (202) 358–1350, Walter.Kit–
1@nasa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Abstract
As required in Section 305(b) of the
National Aeronautics and Space Act of
1958 and the NASA Supplement to the
Federal Acquisition Regulation, NASA
R&D contracts require contractor/
recipient reporting of new technologies
to NASA using NASA eNTRe system for
electronic submissions and NASA Form
1679 for paper submissions.
II. Method of Collection
NASA will utilize a web-base on-line
form to collect this information.
Approximately 65 per cent of the
responses will be collected
electronically.
III. Data
Title: AST-Technology Utilization.
OMB Number: 2700–0009.
Type of Review: Regular.
Affected Public: Business or other forprofit and not-for profit institutions.
Estimated Number of Respondents:
830.
Estimated Time per Response: 1 hour
for manual responses and 0.75 hour for
electronic responses.
Estimated Total Annual Burden
Hours: 1075.
Estimated Total Annual Cost: $0.
IV. Request for Comments
Comments are invited on: (1) Whether
the proposed collection of information
is necessary for the proper performance
of the functions of NASA, including
whether the information collected has
practical utility; (2) the accuracy of
NASA’s estimate of the burden
(including hours and cost) of the
proposed collection of information; (3)
ways to enhance the quality, utility, and
clarity of the information to be
collected; and (4) ways to minimize the
burden of the collection of information
on respondents, including automated
collection techniques or the use of other
forms of information technology.
Comments submitted in response to
this notice will be summarized and
included in the request for OMB
approval of this information collection.
They will also become a matter of
public record.
Bobby German,
Deputy Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. E7–21948 Filed 11–7–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7510–13–P
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 216 (Thursday, November 8, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63197-63199]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-21920]
=======================================================================
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Bureau of International Labor Affairs, Request for Information on
Efforts by Certain Countries To Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child
Labor
AGENCY: The Bureau of International Labor Affairs, United States
Department of Labor.
ACTION: Request for information on efforts by certain countries to
eliminate the worst forms of child labor.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This notice is a request for information for use by the
Department of Labor in preparation of an annual report on certain trade
beneficiary countries' implementation of international commitments to
eliminate the worst forms of child labor. This will be the seventh such
report by the Department of Labor under the Trade and Development Act
of 2000 (TDA).
DATES: Submitters of information are requested to provide two (2)
copies of their written submission to the Office of Child Labor, Forced
Labor and Human Trafficking at the address below by 5 p.m., December 7,
2007.
ADDRESSES: Written submissions should be addressed to Tina McCarter at
the Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor and Human Trafficking, Bureau
of International Labor Affairs, U.S. Department of Labor, 200
Constitution Avenue, NW., Room S-5317, Washington, DC 20210 or may be
sent via e-mail to mccarter.tina@dol.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tina McCarter or Charita Castro,
Bureau of International Labor Affairs, Office of Child Labor, Forced
Labor and Human Trafficking, at (202) 693-4843, fax: (202) 693-4830, or
via e-mail to mccarter-tina@dol.gov or castro.charita@dol.gov. The
Department of Labor's international child labor reports can be found on
the Internet at https://www.dol.gov/ILAB/media/reports/iclp/main.htm or
can be obtained from the Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor and Human
Trafficking.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Trade and Development Act of 2000 [Pub.
L. 106-200] established a new eligibility criterion for receipt of
trade benefits under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP),
Caribbean Basin Trade and Partnership Act (CBTPA), and Africa Growth
and Opportunity Act (AGOA). The TDA amends the GSP reporting
requirements of the Trade Act of 1974 (Section 504) [19 U.S.C. 2464] to
require that the President's annual report on the status of
internationally recognized worker rights include ``findings by the
Secretary of Labor with respect to the beneficiary country's
implementation of its international commitments to eliminate the worst
forms of child labor.'' Title II of the TDA and the TDA Conference
Report [Joint Explanatory Statement of the Committee of Conference,
106th Cong.2d.sess. (2000)] indicate that the same criterion applies
for the receipt of benefits under CBTPA and AGOA, respectively.
In addition, the Andean Trade Preference Act (ATPA) as amended and
expanded by the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act
(ATPDEA) (Pub. L. 107-210, Title XXXI) includes as a criterion for
receiving benefits ``[w]hether the country has implemented its
commitments to eliminate the worst forms of child labor as defined in
section 507(6) of the Trade Act of 1974.''
Scope of Report
Countries and non-independent countries and territories presently
[[Page 63198]]
eligible under the GSP and to be included in the report are:
Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Angola, Anguilla, Argentina,
Armenia, Bangladesh, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, British Indian Ocean Territory, British
Virgin Islands, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde,
Central African Republic, Chad, Christmas Island, Cocos Islands,
Colombia, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of Congo,
Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Cote d'Ivoire, Croatia, Djibouti, Dominica,
Dominican Republic, East Timor, Ecuador, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea,
Eritrea, Ethiopia, Falkland Islands, Fiji, Gabon, the Gambia, Georgia,
Ghana, Gibraltar, Grenada, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Heard
Island and MacDonald Islands, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan,
Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kyrgyz Republic, Lebanon, Lesotho,
Liberia, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius,
Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal,
Niger, Nigeria, Niue, Norfolk Island, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New
Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Pitcairn Island, Russia, Rwanda,
Saint Helena, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines, Samoa, Sao Tom[eacute] and Principe, Senegal, Serbia,
Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Sri
Lanka, Suriname, Swaziland, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tokelau Island,
Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turks and Caicos Islands,
Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela,
Wallis and Futuna, West Bank and Gaza Strip, Western Sahara, Republic
of Yemen, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Countries eligible or potentially eligible for additional benefits
under the AGOA and to be included in the report are: Angola, Benin,
Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Chad, Republic
of Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Gabon,
the Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia,
Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia,
Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles,
Sierra Leone, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia.
Countries potentially eligible for additional benefits under the
CBTPA and to be included in the report are: Barbados, Belize, Costa
Rica, Dominican Republic, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Panama, Saint Lucia,
and Trinidad and Tobago.
Countries potentially eligible for additional benefits under the
ATPA/ATPDEA and to be included in the report are: Bolivia, Colombia,
Ecuador, and Peru.
In addition, the following countries will be included in the report
in view of Department of Labor Appropriations, 2006, Conference Report,
H.R. Rep. 109-337 (2005): Bahrain, Chile, El Salvador, Guatemala,
Honduras, Morocco, and Nicaragua.
Information Sought
The Department invites interested parties to submit written
information relevant to the findings to be made by the Department of
Labor under the TDA, for all listed countries. Information provided
through public submission will be considered by the Department of Labor
in preparing its findings. Materials submitted should be confined to
the specific topic of the study. In particular, the Department's Bureau
of International Labor Affairs is seeking written submissions on the
following topics:
1. Whether the country has adequate laws and regulations
proscribing the worst forms of child labor. Specifically, DOL is
seeking the following information:
(a) What laws have been promulgated on child labor, such as minimum
age(s) for employment or hazardous forms of work? Are there exceptions
to these laws?
(b) What laws have been promulgated on the worst forms of child
labor, such as forced child labor and trafficking or child prostitution
and pornography? What is the country's minimum age for military
recruitment?
(c) If the country has ratified Convention 182, has it developed a
list of occupations considered to be worst forms of child labor, as
called for in article 4 of the Convention?
2. Whether the country has adequate laws and regulations as well as
formal institutional mechanisms for the implementation and enforcement
of such laws and regulations; specifically:
(a) What legal remedies are available to government agencies that
enforce child labor laws (criminal penalties, civil fines, etc.), and
are they adequate to deter violations?
(b) To what extent are complaints investigated and violations
addressed?
(c) What level of resources does the government devote to
investigating child labor cases? How many inspectors does the
government employ to address child labor? How many child labor
investigations have been conducted over the past year? How many have
resulted in penalties or convictions?
(d) Has the government provided training activities for officials
charged with enforcing child labor laws?
3. Whether social programs exist in the country to prevent the
engagement of children in the worst forms of child labor, and to assist
in the removal of children engaged in the worst forms of child labor;
specifically:
(a) What initiatives has the government supported specifically to
prevent or withdrawn children from exploitive work situations, such as
school scholarships conditioned on a child' withdrawal from child
labor? (If possible, please provide information on funding levels for
such initiatives.)
4. Whether the country has a comprehensive policy for the
elimination of the worst forms of child labor; specifically:
(a) Does the country have a comprehensive policy or national
program of action on child labor or any of its forms?
(b) Does the country specifically incorporate child labor in
poverty reduction, development, educational or other social policies or
programs, such as Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers, etc? If so, to
what degree has the country implemented the policy and/or program of
action and achieved its goals and objectives?
(c) Is education free in law and in practice? Is education
compulsory in law and in practice?
Please note that although many anti-poverty programs may have
indirect impacts on child labor, the TDA calls for governments to take
specific actions to address the problem. Therefore, the DOL's report
focuses on efforts that name child labor as an explicit objective,
target group, or condition for participation in government policies and
programs.
5. Whether the country is making continual progress toward
eliminating the worst forms of child labor; specifically:
(a) In what sectors/work activities/goods are children involved and
how has this changed over the past year? Information on age and gender
of working children, disaggregated by industry/work activity/good, is
appreciated.
(b) To what extent are children working in slavery or practices
similar to slavery, such as debt bondage, serfdom, and forced or
compulsory labor? Please indicate industries where this occurs and, if
applicable, specific goods that such children produce.
(c) To what extent are children trafficked to work? Are children
trafficked for commercial sex or for labor exploitation? Information on
the
[[Page 63199]]
industries into which children are trafficked and the goods that they
produce in this situation is appreciated. Are they trafficked across
national borders or within the country (specify source, destination and
transit countries/regions/communities, if possible).
Copies of any recent government surveys on child labor are most
appreciated. In regard to education statistics and to ensure
comparability across countries in the TDA report, DOL will generally
rely on UNESCO Institute of Statistics data (https://
stats.uis.unesco.org/).
DOL greatly appreciates submission of original sources. Information
submitted may include reports, newspaper articles, or other materials.
Governments that have ratified ILO Convention 182 are requested to
submit copies of their most recent article 22 submissions under the
Convention, especially those with information on types of work
determined in accordance with Article 3(d) of the Convention.
Definition of Worst Forms of Child Labor
The term ``worst forms of child labor'' is defined in section
412(b) of the TDA as comprising:
``(A) all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as
the sale and trafficking of children, debt bondage and serfdom and
forced or compulsory labor, including forced or compulsory recruitment
of children for use in armed conflict;
(B) the use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, for
the production of pornography or for pornographic performances;
(C) the use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit
activities, in particular for the production and trafficking of drugs
as defined in relevant international treaties; and
(D) work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is
carried out, is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of
children.''
The TDA Conference Report noted that the phrase, ``work which, by
its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely
to harm the health, safety or morals of children'' is to be defined as
in Article II of Recommendation No. 190, which accompanies ILO
Convention No. 182. This includes
``(a) work which exposes children to physical, psychological, or
sexual abuse;
(b) work underground, under water, at dangerous heights or in
confined spaces;
(c) work with dangerous machinery, equipment and tools, or which
involves the manual handling or transport of heavy loads;
(d) work in an unhealthy environment which may, for example, expose
children to hazardous substances, agents or processes, or to
temperatures, noise levels, or vibrations damaging to their health;
(e) work under particularly difficult conditions such as work for
long hours or during the night or work where the child is unreasonably
confined to the premises of the employer.''
The TDA Conference Report further indicated that this phrase be
interpreted in a manner consistent with the intent of Article 4 of ILO
Convention No. 182, which states that such work shall be determined by
national laws or regulations or by the competent authority in the
country involved.
This notice is a general solicitation of comments from the public.
Signed at Washington, DC this 5th day of November, 2007.
Charlotte Ponticelli,
Deputy Undersecretary, Bureau of International Labor Affairs.
[FR Doc. E7-21920 Filed 11-7-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-28-P
