A hard knock life

Technical assistance is recognized in International Labor Organization (ILO) C 182 (Article 8) and ILO R 190 (Articles 11 and 16). Regulation of child labor outside the context of international treaty implementation has developed as well, in the context of the growing field of corporate social responsibility. Early reports from International Program on the Elimination of Child Labor (IPEC) emphasize that not all child work counts as child labor and focus on harmful forms of work. These reports helped to lay the groundwork for the development of ILO C 182 on the worst forms of child labor. One recent development in corporate social responsibility is the emergence of commodity-based agreements between companies. Rather than one company addressing child labor, or other core labor rights issues, a number of companies within a commodity sector have come together to establish common codes, with some remedial measures.Keywords: child labor; corporate social responsibility; International Labor Organization (ILO); International Program on the Elimination of Child Labor (IPEC); technical assistance programs

MotivationChild labour persists in the global South. After ratifying the International Labour Organization's Convention No. 138, on “the minimum age for admission to employment and work,” many southern countries have legislated minimum age criteria to fulfil their International Labour Organizations obligations. Often, however, making law has neither significantly reduced child labour nor boosted school attendance—largely because of states' inability to ensure compliance.PurposeWe investigate, using the case of Nepal, whether legal knowledge about minimum age standards among parents supplying, and employers demanding, child labour makes a difference to child labour.Methods and approachDrawing on data from communities in the Terai of Nepal, we use mixed methods to find correlations between legal knowledge, compliance with child labour laws, and prevalence of child labour. We draw on two novel data sets: a large household survey of parents and children, and a small census of owners of brick kilns, where child labour is often seen. We also make use of qualitative interviews with citizens in one community in the Terai.FindingsWe show that when parents and employers know the law on child labour, they are more likely to comply with it. Perceptions of the law also matter, independently of legal knowledge. When individuals know the legal working age and believe it is appropriate, we see even more compliance.Policy implicationsThese findings suggest that, even when enforcing the law may be difficult and costly, informing and educating parents and employers may be a less costly way to reduce child labour. Such measures would be even more effective if paired with efforts to change perceptions of the law.

Concerns about the use of child labor in West African cocoa production became widespread in the early 2000s in many high-income countries. In 2015 in Ghana, 91.8% (or a total of 878,595) of the children working in the cocoa sector were involved in a form of hazardous work. Child labor in cocoa production is not just a symptom of poverty but also a contributing factor, as children often forgo a formal education to work in cocoa orchards. Current Ghanaian law prohibits child labor, but, with many cocoa households living in poverty, child labor becomes a necessity for survival, and as such, current child labor laws are rarely enforced. Therefore, an effective policy that eliminates child labor could compensate farmers by providing an economic incentive. In this paper, we develop and calibrate a farm household model to estimate the cocoa price premium necessary to eliminate child labor from cocoa production while leaving the farm household welfare unchanged. This welfare-neutral price premium removes the negative effects of eliminating child labor for the farm household. Varying degrees of child labor exists, with certain forms posing a greater risk to children’s wellbeing. The results show that eliminating the worst forms of child labor would require a cocoa price premium of 2.81% and eliminating regular work (non-hazardous work but over the maximum hours allowed for a child) and the worst forms would require an 11.81% premium, which could be paid for by the well-established Ghanaian Cocoa Marketing Board. An incentive for the Cocoa Marketing Board to pay the price premium and monitor and enforce this policy would be the ability to differentiate their cocoa as child-labor free and not lose market share to countries who cannot currently certify this practice.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that 19% of children aged 5-14 in Asia and the Pacific are economically active (ILO, 2002). These 127.3 million children constitute 60% of all child labourers worldwide. The aim of this study is to better understand child labour in South Asia through in-depth case studies of the child labour experience in three countries: Nepal, Pakistan, and Vietnam. Several themes about child labour emerge in examining data from these three countries. First, any discussion of child labour needs to consider wage work as well as unpaid work including household production activities. Children who work in one type of activity are more likely to work in other activities as well. Thus, focusing on only one aspect of child employment seriously understates child labour supply. Second, there is some evidence of important substitutions of child and adult labour across different household activities that may be very costly for the welfare of the ...

In a recent paper, Kaushik Basu and Pham Hoang Van (BV, 1998) develop an important and very interesting model in which a fairly productive economy exhibits multiple equilibria, with children working in at least one. They identify two assumptions as essential to this result. The first - - which they call the luxury axiom - - is that a family sends its children to the labor market only if its income from sources other than child labor is very low. The second is embodied in their substitution axiom which states that from the point of view of firms, child labor is substitutable for adult In this comment, we show that in addition to these two assumptions about the micro-level behavior of households and firms, there is also an essential macro-level assumption that may be termed the distribution axiom: income or wealth from non-labor sources must be sufficiently concentrated in the hands of a few agents. We establish that if non-labor income is distributed with sufficient equality, a market equilibrium with child labor cannot exist in the BV model. Beyond their contribution as an extension of BV's theory, our results formalize a proposition implicit in recent policy discussions of child Christiaan Grootaert and Ravi Kanbur (1995) note that as household-level poverty is well-known to be the major cause of child labor, [g]eneral economic development, equitably distributed, is the best and most sustainable way of reducing child labor. (p. 198, emphasis added) Policy documents from the International Labor Organization (ILO) have long conveyed this view, and now the World Bank appears to as well (Peter Fallon and Zafiris Tzannatos, 1998). There is a growing recognition that while economic development and development policies are necessary to eliminating child labor, they are not always sufficient on their own. Distributional considerations matter. Indeed, in the case in which BV's model yields multiple equilibria, the economy is developed enough to eliminate child In this comment it becomes clear that if child labor exists in this economy, the causes are purely distributional.

Child labour remains a persistent socio-economic challenge in Bihar despite various legislative measures and welfare initiatives introduced by the Government of India and the Government of Bihar. This study examines the effectiveness of government policies and welfare schemes in reducing child labour in the state. It critically analyzes key interventions such as the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, the Right to Education Act, the National Child Labour Project (NCLP), Mid-Day Meal Scheme, and poverty alleviation programs. The research adopts a mixed-method approach, combining secondary data analysis from government reports, census records, and NSSO surveys with qualitative insights from field observations and stakeholder interviews. Findings indicate that while enrollment in schools has significantly increased due to educational incentives and awareness campaigns, economic vulnerability, migration, lack of strict enforcement, and socio-cultural factors continue to contribute to child labour, particularly in rural and marginalized communities. Welfare schemes have positively influenced school attendance and reduced hazardous child labour, yet informal sector employment remains a concern. The study concludes that although government initiatives have contributed to measurable progress, their impact is uneven across districts. Strengthening monitoring mechanisms, ensuring effective implementation at the grassroots level, enhancing livelihood opportunities for families, and promoting community awareness are essential for sustainable eradication of child labour in Bihar.

Halima is an 11-year-old girl who clips loose threads off of Hanes underwear in a Bangladeshi factory. She works about eight hours a day, six days per week. She has to process 150 pairs of underwear an hour. At work she feels “very tired and exhausted,” and sometimes falls asleep standing up. She makes 53 cents a day for her efforts. Make no mistake, it is a rough life.Any decent person’s heart would go out to Halima and other child employees like her. Unfortunately, all too often, people’s emotional reaction lead them to advocate policies that will harm the very children they intend to help. Provisions against child labor are part of the International Labor Organization’s core labor standards. Anti-sweatshop groups almost universally condemn child labor and call for laws prohibiting child employment or boycotting products made with child labor.In my recent book, Out of Poverty: Sweatshops in the Global Economy, I argue that much of what the anti-sweatshop movement agitates for would harm workers and that the process of economic development, in which sweatshops play an important role, is the best way to raise wages and improve working conditions. Child labor, although the most emotionally charged aspect of sweatshops, is not an exception to this analysis.We should desire to see an end to child labor, but it has to come through a process that generates better opportunities for the children — not from legislative mandates that prevent children and their families from taking the best option available to them. Children work because their families are desperately poor, and the meager addition to the family income they can contribute is often necessary for survival. Banning child labor through trade regulations or governmental prohibitions often simply forces the children into less-desirable alternatives. When U.S. activists started pressuring Bangladesh into eliminating child labor, the results were disastrous.

The persistence of child labor as a widespread global phenomenon is a result of the failure to challenge the conditions of economic injustice and child exploitation. Underlying this failure are...

We analyse the geographic incidence of child labour in small manufacturing firms in Indonesia at the village level. Our unique data set covers virtually all Indonesian villages and urban neighbourhoods; it allows us to distinguish between demand and supply side determinants of child labour. We show by correcting for sample selection that a number of counterintuitive results – child labour being unaffected by credit access and school proximity – are the result of an interplay between supply and demand side determinants. Credit access and school proximity reduce child labour supply, but simultaneously constitute positive location factors for firms thereby increasing the demand for child labourers. To effectively reduce child labour, growth oriented policies, such as enhancing school and credit facilities, should be complemented by policies specifically geared towards increasing school attendance.

Child labor continues to exist as a problem specific to childhood worldwide. Children, considered disadvantaged groups, today face a wide range of risks. While sensitivity to child protection has increased, particularly after World War II, it is not yet at the desired level. States and international organizations continue their efforts to protect children. While these efforts have been effective to some extent, they have not met expectations, particularly in terms of reducing child labor. In this respect, the importance of sociological factors in reducing child labor comes to the fore. Sociology recommends examining childhood within the framework of social, cultural, economic, familial, and many other variables. When considered from this perspective, considering child labor within the framework of socioeconomic causes will facilitate understanding of the issue. The focus of this study is the family and the child. From birth, the child grows up within the family, and their identity is shaped by the values of that society. The society in which the child lives and the family’s perspective on the child have a shaping effect on all processes related to the child, especially child labor. This study conducted a socioeconomic analysis of child labor in Turkey, focusing on various social variables, particularly the family. A qualitative method was used in the study, and the dataset was developed using data from ILO, UNICEF, and TÜİK. Family, education, migration, economic, and regional variables were found to be influential in the emergence, perception, and resolution of child labor in Turkey.

Although there is an extensive literature on the determinants of child labor and many initiatives aimed at combating it, there is limited evidence on the consequences of child labor on socioeconomic outcomes such as education, wages, and health. We evaluate the causal effect of child labor participation on these outcomes using panel data from Vietnam and an instrumental variables strategy. Five years subsequent to the child labor experience, we find significant negative impacts on school participation and educational attainment, but also find substantially higher earnings for those (young) adults who worked as children. We find no significant effects on health. Over a longer horizon, we estimate that from age 30 onward the forgone earnings attributable to lost schooling exceed any earnings gain associated with child labor and that the net present discounted value of child labor is positive for discount rates of 11.5 percent or higher. We show that child labor is prevalent among households likely to have higher borrowing costs, that are farther from schools, and whose adult members experienced negative returns to their own education. This evidence suggests that reducing child labor will require facilitating access to credit and will also require households to be forward looking.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the theory, policy and practice of child labour in Latin America. Interventions to reduce child labour are more likely to be successful if they are locally‐driven, supported by legislation and based on theoretical understandings of childhood that reflect the realities and needs of the children, families and communities whose lives they aim to improve.Design/methodology/approachSociological and anthropological discourses on children's life worlds are reviewed to situate changes in our understanding of child labour. These theoretical developments are then discussed in the light of changing international legislation, such as ILO's convention 182. Recent statistics suggest a trend for declining child labour and we study the link between statistics, theoretical and legislative positions.FindingsThe ILO's 2006 child labour statistics and examples of policies in Latin America support the hypothesis that theoretical developments in the concept of childhood have influenced successful interventions aimed at its reduction. This theory‐policy‐practice partnership appears to have been a catalyst for the development of successful “government–private‐enterprise – civil society” programmes to reduce child labour.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough these multi‐sectorial strategies have been successful in Latin America, further research is needed to see whether similar policies and interventions can be repeated in other regions.Originality/valueThe paper is original in its linking of theory, policy and practice in the context of recent statistics and programmes at reducing child labour in Latin America.

The International Labour Organisation (the ILO) has regulated child labour through the Minimum Age Convention and the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention. Such conventions aim at the reduction and eventual elimination of harmful labour practices. After the ratification of such conventions, many countries have adopted domestic laws prohibiting harmful labour. Despite such regulations, statistics prove that children still participate in harmful work. The main purpose of this article is to assess the ILO child labour conventions critically, so as to provide further understanding of the provisions of the text of such instruments. While the aim of the Minimum Age Convention was the progressive eradication of child labour, the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention recognises the existence of tolerable forms of child labour, and it seeks to eliminate the worst forms of child labour.Keywords: Child labour, Worst forms of child labour, Child work, Hazardous work; Minimum age, International Labour Organisation, ILO

OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS television news cameras have focussed on the developing world where children as young as five years of age slave away making products for Western consumption. Last year, a Canadian teenager drew North American attention to the Dickensian plight of Pakistani children who stitch together soccer balls for the sporting goods manufacturer, Nike, or work in dark, poorly ventilated explosives factories making fireworks for Fourth of July, Guy Fawkes Night, and Canada Day celebrations.Although by turns naive and self-righteous, this crusade and others like it pricked the conscience of the Western world. Bargain-hungry North American and European consumers and 'evil'.multinationals were blamed for exploiting defenceless Third World children. Few escaped scrutiny. Kathy Lee Gifford, a United States television personality, was embarrassed to learn that the clothing bearing her name on sale at hundreds of Wal-Mart stores was made by exploited workers, many of them under 16 years old, in Central American sweatshops.Throughout Europe and North America, organized labour, non- governmental organizations, and other lobby groups managed to rally public support for fair labour standards by shaming multinationals into action. But while anti-child labour crusaders focussed their efforts against large corporations doing business in Third World countries, they virtually ignored what was happening in their own backyard. Then in September 1995, police raided sweatshops in California and New York which employed illegal Thai workers. According to main-stream press reports, the workers, some of them children, were confined against their will and forced to make clothing that was sold in large and profitable American retail chains. Although the reports of virtual slavery were indeed shocking, many interest groups preferred to confine their campaigns to the squalid conditions in the developing world. Perhaps it was easier and more politically advantageous to blame multinationals and seemingly uncaring Third World legislators for the problem than to try to rectify such complex inequities at home.James Cooper teaches advanced public international law at the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto. A barrister and solicitor, he has lectured on comparative and international law throughout Europe and North America.Child labour is an enormous and widespread global issue. Although the problem is most prevalent in the Third World, the exploitation of children in labour is an age-old concern, affecting both the industrialized and underdeveloped worlds. In the Third World, the statistics are predictably grim. According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), in developing countries as many as 250 million children between the ages of five and fourteen are engaged in some kind of economic activity. At least half are employed full-time. Between 15 and 20 per cent are under the age of ten. Many are employed in conditions that harken back to the early days of the Industrial Revolution. They work in factories and warehouses, in forced or bonded labour conditions, sometimes at the behest of their parents. They make matches and fireworks, toil in mines and brickworks. They are exposed to a number of lethal hazards, including pesticide poisoning and toxic fumes. Outside the factories, millions of children work in the agriculture and fishing industries. Millions more work as domestic servants and as prostitutes.Child labour knows no boundaries. The ILO claims that the biggest problem is in Asia, which has an estimated 153 million child workers. Africa comes second with 80 million child labourers. There are an estimated 17.8 million child labourers in Latin America. But such broad strokes do not adequately explain the situation. Brazil, the largest Latin American economy, has more children aged 14 or under at work than does India. Turkey has 24 million child labourers, while Thailand has more than 16 million.The problem also exists in industrialized European countries. …

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the effect of globalization and credit market imperfections on child labour.Design/methodology/approachAnalysis is based on cross-country regression framework, incorporating 129 developing countries for the period 1970-2010.FindingsThe findings indicate that countries that are more open to trade and having higher foreign direct investment inflow have lower incidence of child labour. As child labour in export-related industries is hard to find, trade sanctions may not have a significant effect on child labour. Further study concludes that income of the bottom quartile of the population is the best representation of the income of the poor when studying child labour.Research limitations/implicationsThe study uses the data compiled by International Labour Organization (ILO). Though much of the variation in the data is because of the adjustments made by ILO, this is the only comparable cross-country estimates available. Hence in the absence of the cross-country comparable estimates, many empirical studies have used this data set (e.g. Cigno et al., 2002; Dehejia and Gatti, 2002; Rogers and Swinnerton, 2001). This study acknowledges this limitation but again in the absence of any comparable estimates, the assessment is also based on this data set.Originality/valueStudy contributes in the literature by comparing the effect of export and trade and by exploring the effect of an alternate measure of the income, estimated by using Gini coefficient, on child labour. Further studies exploring the effect of globalization did not explore the presence of imperfect credit market, however, this study has explored the effect of credit market imperfections as well.