ДИТЯЧА ПРАЦЯ В ТУРЕЧЧИНІ

Like many other global issues, the presence of child labor in Turkey with thousands of children working in a way that is detrimental to their health, education, and development has become a social and economic ill. There are many child labor solution programs that have been put in place by both state and none state actors, however, the practice has remained a persistent challenge due to various socio-economic forces, gaps in the existing legal structures and difficulties in their implementation. There is therefore a need to assess the reasons for this persistent trend in child labor, and thus this paper examines the current child labor laws in Turkey, their implementation, and the treatment of international law concerning the Turkish legislation on the children’s working right. The present study seeks to provide practical policy proposals that are aimed at enhancing the existing government legislation on child labor in comparison with the regulation of this issue in other countries. Research Objectives. In line with the above, the case study has been designed to comprehensively achieve three important objectives in addressing the issue of child labor in Turkey:1) The aim is to review the existing laws and policies related to child labor, pointing out the strengths and weaknesses within the Turkish legal framework. 2) Although it does not include an analysis of the effectiveness of the child labor legislation, a comparative study will be conducted with the legal frameworks of selected countries, namely the EU, Spain and the United States of America, which have established policies against child labor. 3) Thus, the expert analysis will result in proposed legislative amendments to strengthen the protection of child labor in Turkey, with an emphasis on compliance with international standards and effective enforcement mechanisms. Methodology. The approach adopted for the study is multifaceted, as it synthesizes a review of relevant academic literature, legal documents and statistical reports. An initial extensive literature review of Turkish and international sources was conducted to provide a basic understanding of child labor and the main legal framework. Academic literature on child labor, child protection and labor law forms the basis of this study. Academic literature on child labor, child protection and labor law forms the basis of this study. This includes research on the socio-economic drivers of child labor in Turkey, comparative analysis of international labor law, and historical reports related to child labor law. Central to this study is an in-depth analysis of Turkish child labor legislation, in particular, the Turkish Labor Law No. 4857 and related regulations on child labor practices, age limits, and employment conditions. The assessment also covers the Turkish Constitution, the Primary Education Law and other related secondary legislation/ circulars. To provide a comparative overview, the study provides an overview of child labor laws in jurisdictions such as the EU, Spain, and the United States, each of which is active on issues related to child labor. This comparison is made with the aim of finding best practices that could be implemented in the Turkish context. The study focuses only on the legal and socio-economic aspects of child labor and does not involve primary data collection through surveys or interviews. Instead, the study is dependent on secondary data sources, which may undermine the breadth of coverage of the research questions regarding real-time enforcement outcomes or public perceptions of child labor in Turkey.