The Morality of Child Labor

From the comfort of their plush offices and fiveYou can't just say they can't work, you have to
to six figure salaries, self-appointed NGO's oftenprovide alternatives."Regrettably, the debate is so
denounce child labor as their employees rush fromladen with emotions and self-serving arguments
one five star hotel to another, $3000that the facts are often overlooked.The outcry
subnotebooks and PDA's in hand. The hairsplittingagainst soccer balls stitched by children in Pakistan
distinction made by the ILO between "child work"led to the relocation of workshops ran by Nike
and "child labor" conveniently targets impoverishedand Reebok. Thousands lost their jobs, including
countries while letting its budget contributors - thecountless women and 7000 of their progeny. The
developed ones - off-the-hook.Reports regardingaverage family income - anyhow meager - fell by
child labor surface periodically. Children crawling in20 percent. Economists Drusilla Brown, Alan
mines, faces ashen, body deformed. The agileDeardorif, and Robert Stern observe wryly:"While
fingers of famished infants weaving soccer ballsBaden Sports can quite credibly claim that their
for their more privileged counterparts in the USA.soccer balls are not sewn by children, the
Tiny figures huddled in sweatshops, toiling inrelocation of their production facility undoubtedly
unspeakable conditions. It is all heart-rending and itdid nothing for their former child workers and
gave rise to a veritable not-so-cottage industry oftheir families."Such examples abound.
activists, commentators, legal eagles, scholars, andManufacturers - fearing legal reprisals and
opportunistically sympathetic politicians.Ask the"reputation risks" (naming-and-shaming by
denizens of Thailand, sub-Saharan Africa, Brazil, oroverzealous NGO's) - engage in preemptive
Morocco and they will tell you how they regardsacking. German garment workshops fired 50,000
this altruistic hyperactivity - with suspicion andchildren in Bangladesh in 1993 in anticipation of the
resentment. Underneath the compelling argumentsAmerican never-legislated Child Labor Deterrence
lurks an agenda of trade protectionism, theyAct.Quoted by Wasserstein, former Secretary of
wholeheartedly believe. Stringent - and expensiveLabor, Robert Reich, notes:"Stopping child labor
- labor and environmental provisions in internationalwithout doing anything else could leave children
treaties may well be a ploy to fend off importsworse off. If they are working out of necessity,
based on cheap labor and the competition theyas most are, stopping them could force them into
wreak on well-ensconced domestic industries andprostitution or other employment with greater
their political stooges.This is especially galling sincepersonal dangers. The most important thing is
the sanctimonious West has amassed its wealththat they be in school and receive the education
on the broken backs of slaves and kids. The 1900to help them leave poverty."Contrary to hype,
census in the USA found that 18 percent of allthree quarters of all children work in agriculture
children - almost two million in all - were gainfullyand with their families. Less than 1 percent work
employed. The Supreme Court ruledin mining and another 2 percent in construction.
unconstitutional laws banning child labor as late asMost of the rest work in retail outlets and
1916. This decision was overturned only inservices, including "personal services" - a
1941.The GAO published a report last week ineuphemism for prostitution. UNICEF and the ILO
which it criticized the Labor Department forare in the throes of establishing school networks
paying insufficient attention to working conditionsfor child laborers and providing their parents with
in manufacturing and mining in the USA, wherealternative employment.But this is a drop in the
many children are still employed. The Bureau ofsea of neglect. Poor countries rarely proffer
Labor Statistics pegs the number of workingeducation on a regular basis to more than two
children between the ages of 15-17 in the USA atthirds of their eligible school-age children. This is
3.7 million. One in 16 of these worked in factoriesespecially true in rural areas where child labor is a
and construction. More than 600 teens died ofwidespread blight. Education - especially for
work-related accidents in the last ten years.Childwomen - is considered an unaffordable luxury by
labor - let alone child prostitution, child soldiers, andmany hard-pressed parents. In many cultures,
child slavery - are phenomena best avoided. Butwork is still considered to be indispensable in
they cannot and should not be tackled in isolation.shaping the child's morality and strength of
Nor should underage labor be subjected to blanketcharacter and in teaching him or her a trade."The
castigation. Working in the gold mines or fisheriesEconomist" elaborates:"In Africa children are
of the Philippines is hardly comparable to waitinggenerally treated as mini-adults; from an early age
on tables in a Nigerian or, for that matter,every child will have tasks to perform in the
American restaurant.There are gradations andhome, such as sweeping or fetching water. It is
hues of child labor. That children should not bealso common to see children working in shops or
exposed to hazardous conditions, long workingon the streets. Poor families will often send a child
hours, used as means of payment, physicallyto a richer relation as a housemaid or houseboy,
punished, or serve as sex slaves is commonlyin the hope that he will get an education."A
agreed. That they should not help their parentssolution recently gaining steam is to provide
plant and harvest may be more debatable.Asfamilies in poor countries with access to loans
Miriam Wasserman observes in "Eliminating Childsecured by the future earnings of their educated
Labor", published in the Federal Bank of Boston'soffspring. The idea - first proposed by Jean-Marie
"Regional Review", second quarter of 2000, itBaland of the University of Namur and James A.
depends on "family income, education policy,Robinson of the University of California at
production technologies, and cultural norms." AboutBerkeley - has now permeated the
a quarter of children under-14 throughout themainstream.Even the World Bank has contributed
world are regular workers. This statistic masksa few studies, notably, in June, "Child Labor: The
vast disparities between regions like Africa (42Role of Income Variability and Access to Credit
percent) and Latin America (17 percent).In manyAcross Countries" authored by Rajeev Dehejia of
impoverished locales, child labor is all that standsthe NBER and Roberta Gatti of the Bank's
between the family unit and all-pervasive, lifeDevelopment Research Group.Abusive child labor
threatening, destitution. Child labor declinesis abhorrent and should be banned and eradicated.
markedly as income per capita grows. To depriveAll other forms should be phased out gradually.
these bread-earners of the opportunity to liftDeveloping countries already produce millions of
themselves and their families incrementally aboveunemployable graduates a year - 100,000 in
malnutrition, disease, and famine - is an apex ofMorocco alone. Unemployment is rife and reaches,
immoral hypocrisy.Quoted by "The Economist", ain certain countries - such as Macedonia - more
representative of the much decried Ecuadorthan one third of the workforce. Children at work
Banana Growers Association and Ecuador's Labormay be harshly treated by their supervisors but
Minister, summed up the dilemma neatly: "Justat least they are kept off the far more menacing
because they are under age doesn't mean westreets. Some kids even end up with a skill and
should reject them, they have a right to survive.are rendered employable.