Child Laborers Work example essay topic

Child Labor Child Labor, refers to the economically active population under the age of fifteen years old, who are employed in various industries (Grootaert, 2). Recently, child labor has become a large topic of debate; however, in most cases, it is very unfavorable. The perception that globalization is leading towards the exploitation of children, is becoming an important problem for international business. In my opinion, child labor should be eradicated. It is not only harmful to the health of children, but it takes away their chance for an education, and simply takes away their childhood. The International Labor Organization estimates that 250 million children around the world, between the ages of five and fourteen, work.

Out of the 250 million, 120 million of them work fulltime (ILO, 5). Child labor is common in industries such as agriculture, domestic services, carpet and textile, quarrying and brick making, and also prostitution. Some children work in factories and other workplaces in the "formal economy"; however, many work on farms or in homes. Child labor has many hazardous effects on the health of children.

Some children work in areas such as stone quarries, tanning leather, and electroplating metals. All of these working conditions endanger the health of the child. Children in different occupations face different fatal diseases. Silicosis, which is caused from working in stone cutting, brick factories, granite and slate factories is one such disease. Tuberculosis, is also another disease endeared by children in pottery related industries. Another very big problem, because of poor living conditions, is malnutrition.

The lack of education for working children is also another very serious problem. Child laborers work for most of the day, and in some cases 16 hours a day. There is no question, that education is a major contributing factor to the overall development of the child. Yet, because of the long working hours, children are deprived of time for education.

Some children are more or less slaves, controlled by their employer to work all the time. In other cases, the parents are even responsible for child labor, because they give priority to labor and making money, over education. Some children must earn the income for the entire household (Grootaert, 3). Aside from lack of schooling, these children have no time for recreation. Rather than playing with their friends, they are working with them, side by side. They share the same burden of financial responsibility as their parents; and therefore face a great deal of physical and emotional stress at an early age.

There are many points that oppose child labor; and yet, in some countries, there seems to be no choice. Children, who become orphans after losing their parents at an early age and have no relatives to support them, have no choice but to work. In developing countries, such as Asia and Africa, there are very few programs that support orphans, due to lack of resources (Grootaert, 7). Parents, living in poverty, sometimes have no other choice but to send their child to work for income.

Around the world, there are many organizations trying to eliminate child labor, by promoting policies that heavily tax goods created by child laborers, or by persuading people not to buy products made by children. The premise is good, and it can work; however, it can also aggravate the situation, because it can leave a child jobless with no way of earning money to survive. Regardless, child labor is widespread (Buckley, 1). Many multinational companies, such as Nike and Wal-Mart have been accused of indirectly using child labor to manufacture some of their products.

American and European automobile manufacturers have subsidiaries in Brazil, who use child labor, as well. Nike will be used here as the primary example. This multinational firm, sells shoes and athletic apparel all over the world; however, Nike doesn't make everything they sell. It is alleged, that contractors will go to developing countries to hire cheap labor.

They will then, put their label onto the products and sell them; however they chose not to know how their products were being made, or who was making them. Here enters "ethics". A report issued by the "Vietnam Labor Watch" in 1997, showed that Nike factories in the country had violated many labor laws. Among the many problems they found, some included full-time workers in the factory getting paid less that $27 a month. Other violations included both physical and emotional abuse and other illnesses. Many other multinational companies are also being accused of using child laborers.

As a result, global businesses are linked directly, and even more indirectly to child labor (Bachman, 1). Businesses are directly involved with child labor when a company employs children to work (2). Businesses are affected indirectly when children produce goods or services and then purchased from other firms (3). More recently, many countries are trying to reduce child labor in hopes that one day it will be abolished. In December 1999, President Clinton asked country leaders at the World Trade Organization meeting in Seattle, to possibly place sanctions on countries that use the most severe forms of child labor (Buckley, 1). However, developing countries including Brazil and India, which have very high rates of child labor, rejected the proposal.

But the rate of child labor is still dropping. In 1996, Brazil had 3.3 million child laborers. Soon after, international pressures, forced President Fernando Henrique Cardoso to create an anti-child labor initiative. This program basically paid parents to send their children to school. By the year 2000, the amount of child workers decreased to 2.5 million. Today, child labor is still decreasing, but it seems almost impossible to eradicate.

Child labor is ethically wrong and immoral; and yet, there are still businesses that choose to turn their heads away.

Bibliography

Bachman, S.L. "The Political Economy of Child Labor and its Impacts on International Business". Business Economics Jul. 2000: 1-4.
Buckley, Stephen. "The Littlest Laborers: Why does Child Labor Continue to Thrive in the Developing World?" Washington Post 16 Mar. 2000: 1-5.
Grootaert, Christian. "Child Labor: an Economic Perspective". International Labor Review 136.1995: 2, 3, 7.
International Labor Organization. 1996.
20 Jun. 2001.