Economic Effects Of Child Labor

One of the major issues faced between third world countries and with western civilization is the question of having child labor laws. Most of the westernization would all agree to get rid of the young under aged children from working in these dark, tight, ill ventilated factories or workshops. However, Chita Divakaruni explains how if the child labor law was to be passed then the children will have no other way to survive and result into being a robber or even worse and lose all their pride that they carry. Divakaruni explains how the passing of the child labor law in the United States, which will prohibit the import of goods from factories that has under aged children working in, would affect the children’s life as a whole and these children will have to result in a worse way of living to survive. On the other hand, Americans see an under aged child working long hard hours in a factory as a huge problem that needs to be stopped. These

The practice of Child Labor in America in the early 1900s had a devastating impact on generations of children. This mainly impacted children of poor and disadvantaged families; these families tended to suffer from generations of debt or were new immigrants to America. These children worked long hours which they did not get paid nearly enough for. They worked hard, dangerous jobs daily. In the 1900s, children chose to support their families in times of need rather than furthering their education, for which they did not get paid nearly enough. These jobs affected their health poorly and had a negative impact on their childhood and development. Children of poor families in cities suffered the most during the Industrial Revolution, because they had to work long hours, did hard jobs, and often sacrificed their health and education to support their struggling families.

In the mid- 1800s , in more developed countries such as great britain and the united states , child labor was simply part of the ebb and flow of family life. whether children worked on family farms, as apprentices to artisans , or as domestic laborers in kitchens and households, their labors was considered to be a significant , and necessary , contribution to the family’s survival. By the mid-1900s , most developed countries has compulsory education laws that limited child labor (zoltan ,melanie barton). By the turn of the twenty- first century , discussions on child labor centered On these less - development regions , specifically on countries such as mexico, Guatcmala, china, and malaysia (zoltan , melanie barton). Crities of child labor

Poverty is the main reason for child labour. Poor households need the money, which their children can earn. Children contribute to 20 – 25 % of family income. It is obvious that the survival of certain families depends on the children’s earnings.

Child Labor is not an isolated problem. The phenomenon of child labor is an effect of economic discrimination. In different parts of the world, at different stages of histories, laboring of child has been a part of economic life. More than 200 million children worldwide, some are as young as 4 and 5

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

Before the 20th century, child labor was common and expected in poorer households. Child labor wasn’t made illegal in the US until 1938. Following the Fair Labor Standards Act, illegal child labor includes minors under sixteen, working dangerous jobs, and are only allotted a certain amount of hours. Children under sixteen can work if it is a family business and not a deemed dangerous job. Some of the countries currently with the worst amount of child labor are Zimbabwe, Pakistan, and Somalia. The less developed countries have child labor still- either because they need it or can’t enforce it.

Currently there are 168 million child laborers in the world. More than half of them, 85 million, employed at hazardous jobs, according to the International Labour Organization. In the article “In Praise of Cheap Labor Bad jobs at bad wages are better than no jobs at all”, Paul Krugman Professor of economics at MIT, explains that child labor cannot just be wiped away like so many other distasteful practices. That it takes a perfect storm of economic success and low child labor numbers for a full transition to labor laws that ban it. Employers will agree to follow the law; similar to what happened in the U.S. in the 1930’s when Congress passed the Fair Labor Standards Act. This Act established standards for the basic minimum wage and overtime pay. It restricts the hours that children under age 16 can work and forbids the employment of children under age 18 in certain jobs deemed too dangerous. Krugman believes that many developing countries are not at a point where they can support a full ban on child labor. He gives the example of countries like “Indonesia [who are,] still so poor that progress is measured in terms of how much the average person gets to eat” (Krugman 4). Professor of economics at Yale university, Christopher Udry, in his article “Child Labor” provides a definition of child labor as “ the sacrifice of the future welfare of the child in exchange for additional income” (243). The causes of Child labor are not as simple as cultural or economic reasons, and a

It is not surprising to point out that the products we purchase daily became cheaper and better due to industrialization. However, I can guarantee you barely know about who actually account for the cheap products that you buy. Generally, people would think the labor force is only made up of adults, especially men. But surprisingly enough, the school-age children are part of the labor force. In fact, 25% of the labor force consisted of children between the ages of ten and fifteen,(Byerly, 43) this percentage will continue to grow unless it can be regulated. The child workers work at various positions, “including working on machines in the factories, selling newspapers on street corners, and as chimney sweeps.”(Nelson) A typical child laborer has to work at least 10 to 14 hours a day for 6 days a week. Which gives them no time to play and go to school.(“The Source-Child Labor”)

The purpose of Alto’s paper is to present a controversial view that child labor is not always a bad and that it is essential. He illuminates his purpose when he states that “more than 100,00 children and teenagers have organized unions to defend their right to work, demanding government protection and improved job conditions”(para. 2). The evidence that he utilizes is interviews from children that are working in Brazil. The children state that the reality of their families’ condition is what makes them participate in the labor market. The paper has a general audience since it is published in a widely available popular press magazine. Alto refrains from utilizing specific jargon that detracts from his main objective of reaching to individuals

Children played a crucial role in the industrial revolution, but historians often overlook their sacrifice and importance to the history of the industrial revolution in the United States. In the academic world, it has been economists, not historians that have drawn more attention to the issue of child labor. Through their theories and equations, they have unraveled the mysterious life of child laborers during the industrial revolution and have hypothesized how things would have turned out had child labor reform been different. Their work keeps changing and evolving as they build off each other’s theories. They also tend to work in pairs when writing articles. Their works cover a broad scope of topics. They investigate the reasons parents sent their children to work, who opposed or promoted child labor laws, they determine the efficiency of child laborers, they investigate education regulations for child laborers, and they attempt to explain the sudden decline in child labor. Economists have differing theses on these topics and often refer to other economists in their work. Historians and economists have warned researchers of child labor that what the data reveals may not be accurate. Parents, children, and employers often lied to evade the laws and regulations surrounding child labor. They lied about ages, school attendance, and anything else that gained them

Most, but not all, historians agree on the fact that parents sent their children to work out of necessity, not want. S.J Kleinberg, a social historian, Kaushik Basu, an economist, and Pham Hoang Van, also an economist, agree that parents had to have working children to survive and ward off destitution. Basu and Van state clearly in their 1998 article, “The Economics of Child Labor” that, “Parents were desperately unhappy about the situations their children were in but could do nothing about it. The social system allowed them no choice." Yet, Thomas Dublin presents a different view in his book, Women at Work: The Transformation of Work and Community in Lowell, Massachusetts, 1826-1860. He studied the young women working in the Lowell mills.

Child labor is a big debate that many people argue about, should children be working under age or not ? Children should be working at a young age. some children feel that they have to get it on they own they need extra money or their parents feel the same way. I agree child labor can be both good and bad , bad because children were missing days from school and really need education. But they have to have money to survive. Although opponents claim child labor should be stopped, child labor should not be stopped because some people have children they have children at a young age that they have to provide for,children have poor families so they have to get money on their own, lastly majority of the youth can't depend on their parents at a financial state.

Low enrollment rates are often considered to be one of the most important consequences of child labor, while low household incomes are considered important determinants (Schultz and Strauss, 2008). Child labor is also increasing because there is no educational material, lack of educational opportunities and negative impact of parents on child labor. Due to lack of learning, poverty and lack of awareness, many parents think that

“We Only Ask for Justice” reads a sign created by protesters of the 1903 march for workers’ rights (Pinkerton Josephson). Mother Jones organized a march to the President in order to fight against the injustice of child labor. Nelson Mandela walked the long road in hopes of finding freedom for all, and Melba Pattillo Beals worked alongside eight others to help integrate Little Rock’s Central High School, strengthening her inner warrior. These three individuals devoted their lives to causes that are imperative, and although they all had their separate fashions of standing up, they all were fighting for the same cause: human rights.