By Lindsey Quinn
The International Labour Organization estimates that there were 218 million child laborers in 20081; many experts anticipate this number will increase after it releases its 2012 update. In fact, Unicef indicates that nearly 1 in 6 children worldwide are child laborers.2 It’s a trend Children International sees around the world.
Fortunately, our program gives children stability – even when they have to work. We offer important tools they need to succeed, like the educational support and school supplies needed to help keep kids in school. Other benefits, like new clothes, shoes and household goods, are vital additions for families who can barely afford food, let alone material goods. It makes a big difference in their lives.
Minimum Age: 4 Stories of Child Labor
Sadly, nearly 1 in 6 children worldwide are child laborers.3
This even includes some of the young people Children International serves. This slideshow illustrates the sacrifices children make to help support their families.
works alongside other family members in a Mexican brick factory.Eleven-year-old María She’s in charge of lifting and carving the bricks.
It takes 1,000 bricks for the family to earn about $15 – work that takes two days to complete. Even with the whole family helping, brick-making only provides enough money to cover food.
working impedes her education.María attends school in the afternoons, but “I do my homework here at the brick factory. I work a little and then I do a little bit of my homework, then I work another little bit and I do that until I finish my homework.”
She’s a driven learner, though, who dreams of becoming a teacher. But, if she didn’t have to work, María confesses, “I would spend my time playing hide-and-seek.”
Young James will take any work he can find, but the 13-year-old typically crushes stone – one of the most common forms of child labor in Zambia.4 James starts work around 5 a.m. and will labor until noon. After that, he goes to school, something his mother insists on. The $3 he earns will go to buy food for the family.
Stone crushing is dangerous and exhausting. James’ hands are torn by blisters, and he risks crushing or cutting his hands and feet as he works. The brute labor leaves him sore every day. “The only good thing about the job,” James said, “is that it enables me to have money.”
Sadly, Sub-Saharan Africa, where James lives and the location of our Zambian program, has the worst child labor statistics in the world:5 65-14 are working.
41% of children aged
Ian’s first day of work occurred when he was 5. That’s when he learned how he could earn money as a trash picker. Five years later, he’s still working to provide assistance to his mother and siblings. Ian’s work brings in between 50¢ and $2.50/day. Sadly, Ian isn’t working alone: an estimated 12% of children in South Asia must still work to help their families.7
The work is hard – he often cuts his hands and is exhausted from his long days – but Ian’s proud of his work. “I don’t steal, unlike others who take away things from houses without asking for permission. That’s a bad thing to do. That’s why I prefer working alone. I do things right,” he said.
Ian has big dreams, though: “I want to become the President.” He wants to lead the country, and mentioned global warming, price hikes, economic crisis – issues that he would like to tackle.
Nonetheless, Ian’s presidency is dependent on his responsibilities now. “It does not matter that much,” he continues when asked about his future, “as long as my siblings get to finish their studies.”
Two tragedies have defined Erika’s life: her mother’s unexpected death and her father’s debilitating stroke.
Unable to work as a carpenter and now raising his children alone, Erika’s father knew the family faced starvation if he didn’t take action. So he taught his daughter how to build furniture.
At 16, Erika has already completed sixth grade, the highest level of compulsory education in Honduras. And, as her family survives on her earnings, she cannot attend high school.
But the young woman dreams of studying, “I would like to have a degree in business administration and manage my own carpentry [business], maybe." Under better circumstances, Erika knows she would be in school, but family comes first, “I can't leave my father alone.”
Reporting assistance and photos by Patricia Huerta, Jesús Almendárez, Azucena Gollaz, Carmie Carpio and Chileshe Chanda.
1. International Labour Office. (2010). Global child labour developments: Measuring trends from 2004 to 2008.
2. Unicef. (2013).Child Labor – The Challenge. Accessed 11 Mar, 2013. http://childinfo.org/labour.html.
3. Unicef. (2013).Child Labor – The Challenge. Accessed 11 Mar, 2013. http://childinfo.org/labour.html.
4. U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs Office. (2011) List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor.
5. Unicef. (2009). Child Labor – Child Labor and Education: Statistics by Area. Accessed 11 Mar, 2013. www.childinfo.org/labour_education.html
6. Unicef. (2013). Child Labor: Statistical Table. Accessed 11 Mar, 2013. www.childinfo.org/labour_countrydata.php.
7. Unicef. (2013). Child Labor – The Challenge: Statistics by Area. Accessed 11 Mar, 2013. http://childinfo.org/labour.html.
