Causes and Solutions to the Problem of Child Labor

Child labour is much worse than it is portrayed by the media. Child labour includes the employment of children in the business, food, clothing industries that is considered to be illicit or exploitative (Bonnet, 2017). It denies children their basic rights such as protection and freedom from exploitation. Children, instead of going to school, work in dangerous and physically damaging work due to limited access to resources. Reliable statistics are scare as child labour continues to grow each day in third world countries such as Africa. An abundance of evidence supports the idea that child slavery still exists in modern societies, where an estimation of 218 million children between 5 and 17 years are affected by slavery around the world (ILO,

When their work do not affect their “health and personal development or interfere with their schooling,” they do not fit the negative notion of child labor (ILO, 1996). Children sometimes assist their parents with housework and take a part in building family businesses without their working hours affecting primary education. This is indeed a beneficial experience for children, because they learn to be productive within their communities. On the other hand, ILO (1996) applies the term child labor when work “is mentally, physically, socially or morally dangerous and harmful to children; and interferes with their schooling by; depriving them of the opportunity to attend school; obliging them to leave school prematurely; or requiring them to attempt to combine school attendance with excessively long and heavy work.” When child labor is engaged in enslavement, separation from families, and misplacement of children on the streets, ILO experts refer to it as the most extreme forms of child

Child labor is a serious problem that affects children from third-world countries all over the world. These children are exploited by multinational corporations ,for their cheap labor all over the world. People, then buy products that come at a cheaper price, from these multinational corporations.These children are often overworked and treated unfairly. People need to stop buying items from countries that endorse child labor.

Child labour is a very real problem in the world today, and although it is declining, progress is happening at a slow and unequal pace. Child labour by the International Labour Organization is defined as “work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential and their dignity, and that is harmful to physical and mental development (Diallo, Etienne, & Mehran, 2013, p. 2).” In the most extreme forms of child labour it could account for child enslavement, separation from their families, exposure to serious hazards and illnesses and being left to fend for themselves on the streets (Dinopoulos & Zhao, 2007). In order for certain types of work to be included as “child labour” depends on the child’s age, the type of work,

“The International Labor Organization estimates that at least 250 million children between the ages of 5 and 14 are working, mostly in the developing world.” Many Americans view child labor as wrong or dangerous, but they do not realize how essential child labor can be in developing countries. In the article “Regulated Child Labor Is Necessary in Developing Countries,” by John Tierney, a current author for the New York Times, focuses on child labor and why it is essential in some developing countries. Tierney creates a sympathetic tone for the readers to try and understand the struggles regarding child labor in developing countries.

When the United States passed the bill that banned the importation of goods made by child labor, Americans thought that it was a victory for children in third world countries. What Americans neglected to consider was the possible negative side effects that the children were to face. Due to the ban, millions of children have lost their jobs and have been left to starve. Prohibiting theses imported materials is not an effective way to make the lives of working children better. When confronting the controversial issue of child labor, one needs to step into the shoes of the children, diminish child labor stereotypes, and focus on regulations and goals to improve working conditions.

“The 2010 ILO Global Report Accelerating action against child labor notes that child labor continues to decline, but that the rate of reduction has slowed. There was a decline of 3% between 2004 and 2008, compared with a 10% decrease between 2000 and 2004.” (UN). Some countries haven’t even developed laws and regulations that are crucial to the process of eliminating child labor. “India, Norfolk Island, Pakistan, and Tonga have not established a minimum age for work. India and Pakistan, as well as six Oceanic countries and territories, have not established a minimum age for hazardous labor. Fiji, Kiribati, Maldives, and Papua New Guinea have not prohibited hazardous occupations and activities for children.” (DOL). Families who are in poverty make it harder to stop child labor and get children education. “Prohibitive costs associated with education—such as books, uniforms, and teacher fees—prevent children from attending school in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia, Kiribati, Kyrgyz Republic, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, and the Solomon Islands.” (DOL). Because families are poor, they are unable to buy school supplies needed for school, therefore, they cannot attend. In addition, starving families do not see school and education as their number one priority. “Physical access to education is a problem for children living in remote, rural areas, particularly in Bhutan, Cambodia, India,

Alberto’s example is not the only example of child labor. There are 196 countries in the world today, and 46 countries don’t protect children under the age of 18 from performing hazardous work. Globally 168 million children between ages 5-17 are child laborers. Many kids never go to school or drop out limiting future options and forcing children to accept low wage work as adults and to raise their own children in poverty. Children work because work is perceived as the best use of their time in contributing to the needs of the family and preparing them for the life they are expected to

As of 2013, 168 million children worldwide are engaged in child labor. The Sub-Saharan Africa region has the second highest number of child laborers in the world; about 59 million as of 2012 (borenproject.org). Child labor refers to the employment of children in any work that deprives children of their childhood, interferes with their ability to attend school, and is mentally, physically, socially or morally dangerous and harmful (ilo.org). Children work in dangerous conditions, harming their mental and physical state. More than half of these children are exposed to the worst forms of child labor. More should be done to end child labor. These children experience unfair treatment, hazardous living conditions, and

All over the world the utilization of child labor robs young children from their desires and aspirations. Meet 12 year old Pakistani Aziz. Instead of living a normal childhood by attending school and playing with others, he is employed at a brick kiln. Each day Aziz works from the first light of day until midnight, while his boss harshly beats him with a cane. Aziz put in these long hours in order to help his impoverished family survive and pay off his dead father’s debts. For example, employers all across the world are hiring children between the ages of 5 and 16 and working them in the same situation as Aziz to work long hours in hazardous conditions. By doing this, employers are depriving children of a healthy childhood stocked with oodles

Children are less biologically mature and less physically strong, which makes them easier to get injured. Due to the danger and chemicals they face in sweatshops, children could develop many diseases as they grow up. The developmental risk factors for children who work in factories are, rapid skeletal growth, greater risk of hearing and vision loss, higher chemical absorption rates, lower heat tolerance. They also have no access to clean water, hand washing, and toilets, and they are exposed to pesticides and sharp tools. Children who work long hours on a regular basis could harm their social and education development. And the reason why injuries happen among the young workers then adults is the lack of experience. According to Clark, “ Children are more likely to trip or get caught in machinery, and their bodies have more trouble breaking down chemical toxins and excreting them “ ( 1996). Child labor has increased in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Around the world there are an estimation of 200 million child laborers ages 6-15. In pursuit of few dollars, children are being sacrificed, some of them are only five or six years old spending their days working in factories, mines, sweatshops, markets, and building sites or sorting through refuse heaps. Parents feel obligated to invest in their older children’s education expecting them they will help finance their younger brothers and sisters education who are already working. In most part of the world, child labor is illegal in most part of the world, and yet it is increasing in many countries believing children are profitable and are very easy to exploit Since,“ they can be paid less, are easily abused without provoking retaliation and are not organized like adults might be” ( Venter, Lancaster 2000). If people around the world get together to demand the rights of those poor

Negative effects of child labor can be solved through provided and accessible education to continue a child’s growth

In developed countries children have to go to school to learn skills for the future. Children learn at an early are to run errands, help to cook, and clean the house. The children often work by choice, in order to have extra pocket money for themselves and for the family. Most children work because in third world countries the money is not for extra leisure but for survival. Children have a better chance being less exploited when they work in a family business. The danger rests when the work is outside of the family.

In the United States, child labor and sweatshops are illegal, and society frowns upon any business that exploits children in the production of goods. Though most would say that they would not support a company that uses child labor to produce its goods, almost everyone has, in fact, knowingly or unknowingly, supported these businesses in one way or another. Children are involved in the production of many of the everyday goods we import from overseas, including the manufacturing of clothes, shoes, toys, and sporting equipment, the farming of cocoa, cotton, sugarcane, and bananas, and the mining of coal, diamonds, and gold (The U.S. Dept. of Labor). Often, we are blinded to this fact.

"Please, sir," replied Oliver, "I want some more." No one will ever forget the simple plea made by the poor hungry little orphan named Oliver Twist. Nobody will be able to omit from his mind the painful blows that Oliver suffered. Nor will anyone cease to recall what it felt like to be young and helpless in a much bigger and stronger world. In an effort to bring the ostracized poverty situation of so many children to the public's attention, Charles Dickens wrote an unforgettable book to touch the hearts of millions. Whether he knew it then or not, he was also bringing a new connotation and worldwide innuendo to the term "child labor".