Child labor can be found in nearly every industryAgricultureAn estimated 60% of child labor occurs in agriculture, fishing, hunting, and forestry. Children have been found harvesting:
bananas in Ecuador
cotton in Egypt and Benin
cut flowers in Colombia
oranges in Brazil
cocoa in the Ivory Coast
tea in Argentina and Bangladesh
fruits and vegetables in the U.S.
Children in commercial agriculture can face long hours in extreme temperatures, health risks from pesticides, little or no pay, and inadequate food, water, and sanitation.
Manufacturing
Electroplate Worker
Photo: David Parker
About 14 million children are estimated to be directly involved in manufacturing goods, including:
Carpets from India, Pakistan, Egypt
Clothing sewn in Bangladesh;
footwear made in India and the Philippines
Soccer balls sewn in Pakistan
Glass and bricks made in India
Fireworks made in China, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, India, and Peru
Surgical instruments made in Pakistan
Mining and Quarrying
Photo: David Parker
Child laborers suffer extremely high illness and injury rates in underground mines, opencast mines, and quarries. Children as young as 6 or 7 years old break up rocks, and wash, sieve, and carry ore. Nine-year-olds work underground setting explosives and carrying loads. Children work in a range of mining operations, including:
Gold in Colombia
Charcoal in Brazil and El Salvador
Chrome in Zimbabwe
Diamonds in Cote d’Ivoire
Emeralds in Colombia
Coal in Mongolia
Domestic ServiceMany children, especially girls, work in domestic service, sometimes starting as young as 5 or 6. This type of child labor is linked to child trafficking. Domestic child laborers can be victims of physical, emotional, and sometimes sexual abuse.
Hotels, Restaurants, and Retail
Photo: David Parker
Some of the work of young people in this sector is considered legitimate, but there are indications of considerable abuse. Low pay is the norm, and in some tourist areas, children’s work in hotels and restaurants is linked to prostitution. In at least one example, child hotel workers received such low pay that they had to take out loans from their employers; the terms of the interest and repayment often led to debt bondage.
“Unconditional Worst Forms†of Child LaborMillions of children are involved in work that, under any circumstance, is considered unacceptable for children, including the sale and trafficking of children into debt bondage, serfdom, and forced labor. It includes the forced recruitment of children for armed conflict, commercial sexual exploitation, and illicit activities, such as producing and trafficking drugs. In 2005, an estimated 5.7 million children were in forced and bonded labor.
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Educational materials containing introductory information on Child Labor, including Workshop Materials—Core Workshop on Child Labor and K-12 Teachers’ Materials, are available through this website,
https://www.continuetolearn.uiowa.edu/laborctr/child_labor/about/what_is_child_labor.html. These materials include Power Point presentations, instructors’ manuals, activities, and handouts. You may adapt these materials to your group’s needs.
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