Melanie Rigsby

Melanie Rigsby - Transcript

The International Labor Organization ILO has estimated that 250 million children between the ages of five and fourteen work in developing countries at least 120 million on a full time basis Sixty one percent of these are in Asia 32 percent in Africa and 7 percent in Latin America Most working children in rural areas are found in agriculture many children work as domestics urban children work in trade and services with fewer in manufacturing and construction



Child labor ranges from fouryear olds tied to rug looms to keep them from running away to seventeen yearolds helping out on the family farm In some cases a child s work can be helpful to him or her and to the family working and earning can be a positive experience in a child s growing up This depends largely on the age of the child the conditions in which the child works and whether work prevents the child from going to school









Children who work long hours often in dangerous and unhealthy conditions are exposed to lasting physical and psychological harm Working at rug looms for example has left children disabled with eye damage lung disease stunted growth and a susceptibility to arthritis as they grow older Children making silk thread in India dip their hands into boiling water that burns and blisters them breath smoke and fumes from machinery handle dead worms that cause infections and guide twisting threads that cut their fingers Children harvesting sugar cane in El Salvador use machetes to cut cane for up to nine hours a day in the hot sun injuries to their hands and legs are common and medical care is often not available



Of nearly 250 million children engaged in child labor around the world the vast majority 70 percent or some 170 million are working in agriculture Child agricultural workers frequently work for long hours in scorching heat haul heavy loads of produce are exposed to toxic pesticides and suffer high rates of injury from sharp knives and other dangerous tools Their work is grueling and harsh violating their rights to health education and protection from work that is hazardous or exploitative



According to the ILO s new report on child labor the number of children working in agriculture is nearly ten times that of children involved in factory work such as garment manufacturing carpetweaving or soccer ball stitching Yet despite their numbers and the difficult nature of their work children working in agriculture have received little attention compared to child labor in manufacturing for export



Nike has been accused of using child labor in the production of its soccer balls in Pakistan This case study will examine the claims and describe the industry and its impact on laborers and their working conditions While Pakistan has laws against child labor and slavery the government has taken very little action to combat it Only a boycott by the United States and other nations will have any impact on slavery and child based industries



The AP was able to follow the work products of 50 children to more than two dozen companies including Campbell Soup Co ChiChi s Mexican restaurants ConAgra Costco H J Heinz Newman s Own J C Penney Pillsbury Sears and Wal Mart All the companies that responded condemned illegal child labor Many launched investigations when told of suppliers employing underage children





Dangerous work Child labor is very common in Bangladesh Recently a lot of western companies have forbidden child workers in their sewing factories Instead the children are forced to do more dangerous work These girls sort garbage in a slum area in Dhaka to make less than a dollar a day

The documentary was aired Friday night It was broadcast in the same week that another Radio Canada exposed the use of child labor manufacturers in Bangladesh the broadcaster quotes several guards as saying that spying was the job they were hired to perform by Wal Mart at Jonquiere in early 2005 One guard said he patrolled the store in civilian clothes watching employees Another said store surveillance cameras were used to follow certain workers An investigative journalist posing as an international buyer visited factories in where garments are manufactured for Wal Mart The products included house brands such as Simply Basic BUM 725 and George all sold in Canadian WalMart stores Children who appeared to be under the age of 14 were filmed using hidden cameras working in the factories Wal Mart has said since that it has stopped buying from the factories filmed in the report The behavior of Wal Mart has become an issue in the campaign for the Jan 23 Canadian election Jack Layton the federal NDP leader and Gilles Duceppe leader of the Bloc Quebecois have both condemned the company



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