The ILO Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (Convention No. 29) is a foundational international labour standard and a legally binding treaty adopted by the International Labour Organization (ILO) on June 28, 1930, and which entered into force on May 1, 1932. Its purpose is to suppress the use of forced or compulsory labour in all its forms within the shortest possible period. The Convention was created to address the widespread use of forced labour, particularly in colonial administrations and certain independent states at the time.
The Convention defines "forced or compulsory labour" in Article 2(1) as "all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily". It requires ratifying states, such as India which ratified it in 1954, to ensure that the use of forced labour is punishable as a penal offence and that penalties are "really adequate and strictly enforced" (Article 25). Article 1(1) mandates that each ratifying Member undertakes to suppress all forms of forced or compulsory labour. The Convention also lists five exceptions to the definition, including compulsory military service and work exacted as a consequence of a court conviction, provided it is under public authority supervision.
The Convention is closely connected to the Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (Convention No. 105), which specifically prohibits state-imposed forced labour for purposes like political coercion or economic development. The Convention was recently updated by the Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (Protocol No. 29), adopted on June 11, 2014, which entered into force on November 9, 2016. The Protocol reaffirms the original definition of forced labour but updates the measures to address modern forms, such as trafficking in persons for the purpose of forced labour. The Protocol requires ratifying states to take effective measures for prevention, victim protection, and access to remedies like compensation. It also deleted the transitional provisions of the original Convention, including Articles 3 to 24, which are no longer applicable.