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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Office of the Secretary

 
Bureau of International Labor Affairs; Notice of Public Hearings

    This document is a notice of public hearings to be held by the 
Department of Labor for the purpose of gathering information regarding 
specific efforts to reduce child labor in countries where child labor 
has been identified as a problem. The hearing will be held on February 
13, 1998, at the Department of Labor, room N-3437, beginning at 9:00 
a.m. The hearing will be open to the public. The Department of Labor is 
now accepting requests from all interested parties to provide oral or 
written testimony at the hearing. Each presentation will be limited to 
ten minutes. The Department is not able to provide financial assistance 
to those

[[Page 1126]]

wishing to travel to attend the hearing. Those unable to attend the 
hearing are invited to submit written testimony. Parties interested in 
testifying at the international child labor hearing should call Maureen 
Jaffe (202)208-4843 ext. 114 to be put on the roster.
    The Department of Labor is currently undertaking a fifth 
Congressionally-mandated report on international child labor (pursuant 
to the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education 
and Related Agencies Appropriation Bill, 1999, P.L. 105-78; Senate 
Report No. 58, 105th Congress, First Session 25-26, 1997). Information 
provided at the hearing will be considered by the Department of Labor 
in preparing its report to Congress. Testimony should be confined to 
the topic of the study. The fifth report will describe how the growing 
international concern about child exploitation has been translated into 
specific efforts and actions in the countries where child labor has 
been identified as a problem. Among the countries that may be examined 
are those mentioned in the Department of Labor's prior reports: By the 
Sweat and Toil of Children (Volume I): The Use of Child Labor in U.S. 
Manufactured and Mined Imports, By the Sweat and Toil of Children 
(Volume II): The Use of Child Labor in U.S. Agricultural Imports and 
Forced and Bonded Child Labor, The Apparel Industry and Codes of 
Conduct: A Solution to the International Child Labor Problem?, and By 
the Sweat and Toil of Children (Volume IV): Consumer Labels and Child 
Labor. The Department of Labor may also cover additional countries 
where child labor has been identified as a problem or where new 
programs or efforts to address the problem have developed. 
Specifically, the International Child Labor Program of the Bureau of 
International Labor Affairs is seeking written and oral testimony on 
the topics noted below:
    1. Specific government policies and initiatives to reduce child 
labor and the results of such efforts. Areas of interest include 
domestic efforts to strengthen law enforcement against the exploitation 
of children, additional investments in child education, changes in 
domestic child labor laws, effective partnerships with nongovernmental 
actors, and participation in international initiatives to fight the 
exploitation of children.
    2. Significant actions in the non-governmental sector to reduce 
child labor, including, for example, areas referenced in paragraph 1 
above, and the results of such efforts.
    2. Additional information regarding child labor in countries where 
it has been identified as a problem. This may include updated 
information on areas covered in the Department of Labor's previous 
reports or new information.

DATES: The hearing is scheduled for Friday, February 13, 1998. The 
deadline for being placed on the roster for oral testimony is 5:00 p.m. 
on Friday, February 6, 1998. Presenters will be required to submit five 
(5) written copies of their oral testimony to the International Child 
Labor Program by 5:00 p.m., Wednesday, February 11, 1998. The record 
will be kept open for additional written testimony until 5:00 p.m., 
Wednesday, February 25, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Written testimony should be addressed to the International 
Child Labor Program, Bureau of International Labor Affairs, Room S-
5303, U.S. Department of Labor, Washington, DC 20210, fax: (202) 219-
4923.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Maureen Jaffe, International Child 
Labor Program, Bureau of International Labor Affairs, Room S-5303, U.S. 
Department of Labor, Washington, D.C. 20210, telephone: (202)208-4843; 
fax (202)219-4923. Persons with disabilities who need special 
accommodations should contact Maureen Jaffe by Monday, February 9, 
1998. The Department of Labor's prior child labor reports can be 
accessed on the internet at http://www.dol.gov/ilab/media/
reports/childnew.htm or can be obtained from the International Child 
Labor Program.
    All written or oral comments submitted pursuant to the public 
hearing will be made part of the record of review referred to above and 
will be available for public inspection.

    Signed at Washington, D.C. this 2nd day of January, 1998.
Andrew J. Samet,
Acting Deputy Under Secretary.
[FR Doc. 98-411 Filed 1-7-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-28-P