An official from the HCM City Department of Social, War Invalids and Social Affairs admitted to Tuoi Tre that child labor is a problem in some districts in HCM City, particularly Tan Phu.
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Pham Nhat Cuong, 14 and Dang Thuy Duong, 15, work very hard but they don’t know how much they will take from their employers at the year’s end. |
On October 30, a Tuoi Tre reporter visited a private garment enterprise at 173/20 Thoai Ngoc Hau Street, Phu Thanh Ward, Tan Phu District, accompanied by Phu Thanh ward officials and police officers.
In a small room of several dozens of square meters, nearly ten workers were busy working.
Sitting among piles of cloth was a half-naked boy.
Meet Le Van Nhut, 15, from Quang Ngai.
Nhat said that he works daily from 7.30am to 11.30am and then from 1pm to 5.30pm and from 7pm to 11pm. He had no weekend or day off.
Tuoi Tre asked Nhat about his work contract and he replied “What is a work contract?”
He did not know how much his salary is because his employer promised to pay Nhat at the year’s end.
Same same, but illegal
Tuoi Tre reporters and Phu Thanh officials visited other enterprises, where most of workers told the same stories. They have to work over 80 hours a week, with no weekends and no extra pay.
While their employers sat next to them, some workers said that they do have labor contracts.
When asked about the details of their contracts, such as health and social insurance, they all said they didn’t understand what these things were.
These “workers” are children from many places, mainly Quang Ngai and Thai Binh as well as some southwestern provinces.
At a room of house No. 553/21 in Luy Ban Bich Street, over 20 workers were laboring in a narrow space, surrounded by piles of cloth and material. Tuoi Tre reporters spoke with two of the many child workers.
One is Pham Nhat Cuong, 14, from Quang Ngai. He said he had worked there for three months and knew nothing about his salary. He said he would be paid at the end of the year.
Another worker is Dang Thi Thuy Duong, 15, from Soc Trang Province, who also didn’t know about her salary.
How to stop child labor abuses?
The latest survey of the HCM City Labour Inspector shows that, of 173 inspected firms, 62 employed child workers, with 149 less than 16 years old.
The numbers of child workers is high in the districts of Tan Binh and Binh Tan. Children must work in poor conditions for 10-14 hours per day without labor contracts.
Except for one limited liability company, these businesses are not registered. An official from the Tan Phu District’s Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs Department admitted that there are thousands of such enterprises in HCM City.
The Tan Phu District’s Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs Department Chief Phan Anh Nhan observed that in the January-September 2009 period, the department discovered 23 violations of the Labor Code, including four cases of child labor. Nhan noted that child labor is a common problem of HCM City, not only in Tan Phu district.
He said there are many difficulties in dealing with this problem, including the lack of personnel and the change of workshops to private firms that use child labor.
Phan Thanh Minh, chief of the Children Protection Division of the HCM City Department of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs, talked about the case of Nguyen Van Den.
Minh said: The case of Den that Tuoi Tre reported last week is unacceptable. This is not a special case. We will combine with related departments to force the employer to pay a satisfactory salary to Den. Through this case, we realize that labor inspections needs to be tightened.
We have investigated and we know that many children work up to 14 hours per day, mainly at garment enterprises in Tan Binh and Binh Tan districts. Their employers are families and small-sized enterprises. We know that many wards don’t know about child labor violations in their areas.
Child labor in HCM City has not been strictly controlled. In HCM City more than 10 percent of the children are from other provinces. They are often recruited from their hometown and brought to HCM City to work. They tell neighbors that these children are their relatives.
Our inspections show that children often work in secluded places and they don’t have chance to meet people, so it is difficult for the local community to detect.
To solve this problem, we need the cooperation of the children protection agencies of wards and districts, as well as the assistance of residents and police. |
VietNamNet/Tuoi Tre
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