Quebec wants to limit the presence of children in the labor market. The Minister of Labor, Jean Boulet, will table a bill to this effect in February, learned The Canadian Press.
The minister confirmed his intentions to the news agency, shortly after receiving a report from the Labor and Manpower Advisory Committee (CCTM).
The group of unions and employers’ associations unanimously recommends that the general age for admission to employment be set at 14 years.
Clearly, this would mean that young people aged 11, 12 or 13 could no longer work, except for exceptions that would be provided for by regulation.
The CCTM also recommends prohibiting young people between the ages of 14 and 16 from working more than 17 hours per week (including weekends) during the school year.
Monday to Friday would be a maximum of 10 hours. These last two restrictions would not apply during holidays and spring breaks.
School safety and perseverance
In the midst of a labor shortage, more and more children find themselves in the labor market.
Their increased presence in the workplace not only raises health and safety issues, accidents having jumped by 36% among those under 16 in 2021, but also school dropouts.
Last June, Jean Boulet began a reflection and reviewed the existing legislation. This exercise has now led him to see “possibilities for improvement” in the Act respecting labor standards.
It undertakes to legislate by “drawing inspiration” from the CCTM’s report, without however guaranteeing that all its recommendations will be found in the bill.
“What is fundamental, […] it is to ensure that the work does not affect the academic path, that it allows school perseverance. […] Too many hours increases the dropout rate,” he said in an interview.
He adds that we must better “protect young people”.
“We have to make sure that young people aged 12 or 13 are not working in restaurant kitchens or in sawmills. […] We cannot accept that.
“Age is one way, but it’s the addition of the recommendations that will have an impact,” he said. The CCTM also recommends more targeted awareness campaigns.
The committee would also like the Ministries of Labor and Employment to do more documentation on child labor in order to better understand its evolution.
It would be a question here of having a better statistical portrait, that is to say of knowing the number of workers, their age and their sector of activity.
It should also be enshrined in law that all the rules relating to child labor must always be interpreted in the interest of the latter by favoring their development and academic success, believes the CCTM.
“We have to be better”
“We will not eliminate all the risks, […] but we have to be better in terms of supervising child labour,” admits Minister Boulet.
Currently, in Quebec, there is no minimum age to work, unlike what is done in six other Canadian provinces.
This does not mean that Quebec is a dunce in Canada; several articles scattered throughout Quebec laws already govern child labor.
For example, a young person under the age of 14 who wants to work must have the consent of his parents.
In addition, under the Education Act, a person 16 years of age or younger who has not obtained a diploma cannot work during school hours.
However, she can work every evening of the week and every weekend.
The tabling of the bill will be followed by a public consultation period. The opposition parties will also be able to add their two cents during the detailed study.