Forced Labour and Other Forms of Labour Exploitation     Exercise vigilance around the continued but declining risk of forced labour: The ILO is not yet proposing to disband the Forced Labour Complaints Mechanism, indicating an ongoing if decreasing problem. 471 Even though the incidence of forced labour in Myanmar is diminishing, ICT tower construction companies and fibre cable operators in particular should remain vigilant to the potential risks of forced labour. There is still the potential for forced labour by the tatmadaw and local authorities in connection with road building and infrastructure construction, although the assessment did not find this is happening in connection with the rollout of the ICT infrastructure. Be alert to and eliminate other forms of labour exploitation: As a least developed country (LDC) with a high degree of rural poverty; a generally uneducated population; underemployment; corruption and a current lack of worker awareness about their rights and few trade unions, there is a high risk for exploitative working conditions. Many of the jobs for local communities will be in unskilled, daily wage jobs, often controlled via third party labour brokers operating either formally or informally – such as in the construction of the network infrastructure. Be alert to working conditions for migrant and temporary workers: ICT companies should be aware that while the prevailing pattern has been one of outmigration from Myanmar to other countries in search of work, as the economy develops, that trend may reverse. In any case, internal labour migration is widespread. Migrant workers are often particularly vulnerable to labour exploitation. 472 These circumstances create the possibility of exploitative working conditions and practices that can in some cases fall within the definition of forced labour, where work is undertaken by a person under the threat of a penalty. Workers indicated they are keen for any kind of paid work, so they are often very reluctant to speak out about what can be exploitative working conditions. Carry out due diligence on labour brokers/labour agencies: ICT companies will need to pay careful attention to the working arrangements and conditions for day labourers or temporary workers engaged through a third party labour agency or broker (who could also be a worker/team leader) to ensure that they are not directly linked to situations of exploitation. The field assessments indicated formal recruitment agencies and labour brokers are not yet commonly visible in network rollout operations. However they are present in other industries (e.g. pipeline construction) where various sub-standard practices have been observed, including not providing basic protections for workers, such as failure to uphold basic working conditions, provide written and understandable contracts, or pay a living wage, and charging workers for PPE provision (see the Oil & Gas Sector-Wide Impact Assessment, Part 4.4) 473. International labour standards prohibit labour brokers from taking fees from workers for job placements; instead, any placement fees should be paid by the employer. While the Myanmar Government has not ratified the relevant ILO Convention, 474 it is a global standard in this emerging area of human rights risk that serves a relevant guide for company practice. Employers should: 471 The ILO reports a reduction in occurrences generally throughout the country but notes that “forced labour remains a problem,” and that the “number of reported cases of forced labour in the private sector is relatively small … but that this does not necessarily reflect the actual situation as there appears to be a general belief that forced labour is in some way an offence committed only by the Government.” ILO, “Update on the operation of the complaint mechanism in Myanmar” GB.319/INS/INF/2 (October 2013). 472 See the IHRB, Dhaka Principles for Migration with Dignity. 473 MCRB, IHRB, DIHR, “Myanmar Oil & Gas Sector-Wide Impact Assessment” (2014). 474 ILO, C181 - Private Employment Agencies Convention (No. 181) (1997). CHAPTER 4.6: LABOUR 203 4 4.6