INDEX

Contents
CHILD LABOR.............................................................................................................................................
HISTORY ..........................................................................................................................................................
DEFINITIONS....................................................................................................................................................
MEANING........................................................................................................................................................................
EFFECTS ...........................................................................................................................................................
DISADVANTAGES ....................................................................................................................................................
HARMFUL TO THE CHILD .............................................................................................................................
LAWS & ACTS PASSED BY THE GOVERNMENT .................................................................................................
The Factories Act of 1948................................................................................................................................................
The Mines Act of 1952 .....................................................................................................................................................
The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection) of Children Act of 2000.......................................................................
The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act of 2009..................................................................
STATISTICS.......................................................................................................................................................
Number of children involved in ILO categories of work, by age and gender in 2002 ..................
ELIMINATING CHILD LABOUR ................................................................................................................................
Exceptions granted ........................................................................................................................................
CHILD LABOUR LAWS AND INITIATIVES ...........................................................................................................
CAUSES OF CHILD LABOUR ....................................................................................................................................
Primary causes ...................................................................................................................................................
Cultural causes ............................................................................................................................................
Macroeconomic causes ...............................................................................................................................
CHILD LABOUR INCIDENTS ..............................................................................................................................
Cocoa production........................................................................................................................................
BONDED CHILD LABOUR IN INDIA ...................................................................................................................
CONSEQUENCES OF CHILD LABOUR .....................................................................................................................
DIAMOND INDUSTRY ................................................................................................................................................
FIREWORKS MANUFACTURE ...................................................................................................................................
The town of Sivakasi in South India has been reported to employ child labour in the
production of fireworks. In 2011, Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu was home to over 9,500 firecracker
factories and produced almost 100 percent of total fireworks output in India. The fireworks

industry employed about 150,000 people at an average of 15 employees per factory. Most of
these were in unorganised sector, with a few registered and organised companies.
 SILK MANUFACTURE .....................................................................................................................................
CARPET WEAVING ...................................................................................................................................
DOMESTIC LABOUR .......................................................................................................................................
COAL MINING.................................................................................................................................................
INITIATIVES AGAINST CHILD LABOUR...............................................................................................................
NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS .........................................................................................................
Many NGOs like Bachpan Bachao Andolan, CARE India, Talaash Association Child Rights
and You, Global march against child labour, RIDE India etc. have been working to
eradicate child labour in India.
DEMOGRAPHY OF CHILD LABOUR ....................................................................................................................
ORGANISATION WORKS AGAINST CHILD LABOUR.......................................................................................
UNICEF ....................................................................................................................................................
Governance, organization, and membership ..............................................................................................
Governing Body ................................................................................................................................................
International Labour Conference ...................................................................................................................
CONVENTIONS.....................................................................................................................................
RECOMMENDATIONS ................................................................................................................................
MEMBERSHIP ....................................................................................................................................................
POSITION WITHIN THE UN ..............................................................................................................................
The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations
(UN). As with other UN specialized agencies (or programmes) working on international
development, the ILO is also a member of the United Nations Development Group ...................
ISSUES..........................................................................................................................................................
FORCED LABOUR............................................................................................................................................
Vulnerability ............................................................................................................................................
DAIGRAMS SHOW THE CHILD LABOR IN INDIA ...........................................................................................
CONCLUSION ......................................................................................................................................................
Child Protection .............................................................................................................................................
Child Rights..............................................................................................................................................
REFERENCES .......................................................................................................................................................
 CHILD LABOR

HISTORY
During the Industrial Revolution, children as young as four
were employed in production factories with dangerous, and often fatal,
working conditions. Based on this understanding of the use of children as
labourers, it is now considered by wealthy countries to be a human
rights violation, and is outlawed, while some poorer countries may allow
or tolerate child labour. Child labour can also be defined as the full-time
employment of children who are under a minimum legal age.

The Victorian era became notorious for employing young children

in factories and mines and as chimney sweeps. Child labour played an
important role in the Industrial Revolution from its outset, often brought
about by economic hardship. Charles Dickens for example worked at the
age of 12 in a blacking factory, with his family in debtor's prison. The
children of the poor were expected to help towards the family budget,
often working long hours in dangerous jobs for low pay,[20] earning 10–
20% of an adult male's wage. In England and Scotland in 1788, two-thirds
of the workers in 143 water-powered cotton mills were described as
children.[21] In 19th-century Great Britain, one-third of poor families were
without a breadwinner, as a result of death or abandonment, obliging
many children to work from a young age.

In the early 1900s, thousands of boys were employed in glass

making industries. Glass making was a dangerous and tough job especially
without the current technologies. The process of making glass includes
intense heat to melt glass (3133 °F). When the boys are at work, they are
exposed to this heat. This could cause eye trouble, lung ailments, heat
exhaustion, cut, and burns. Since workers were paid by the piece, they had
to work productively for hours without a break. Since furnaces had to be
constantly burning, there were night shifts from 5:00 pm to 3:00 am Many
factory owners preferred boys under 16 years of age.
DEFINITIONS
The termchild labour, suggests ILO, is best defined as work that
deprives children of their childhood, their potential and their dignity, and
that is harmful to physical and mental development. It refers to work that
is mentally, physically, socially or morally dangerous and harmful to
children, or work whose schedule interferes with their ability to attend
regular school, or work that affects in any manner their ability to focus
during school or experience a healthy childhood.

UNICEF defines child labour differently. A child, suggests UNICEF, is

involved in child labour activities if between 5 to 11 years of age, he or she
did at least one hour of economic activity or at least 28 hours of domestic
work in a week, and in case of children between 12 to 14 years of age, he or
she did at least 14 hours of economic activity or at least 42 hours of
economic activity and domestic work per week. UNICEF in another report
suggests, "Children’s work needs to be seen as happening along a
continuum, with destructive or exploitative work at one end and beneficial
work - promoting or enhancing children’s development without interfering
with their schooling, recreation and rest - at the other. And between these
two poles are vast areas of work that need not negatively affect a child’s
development."
India's Census 2001 office defines child labor as participation of a child less
than 17 years of age in any economically productive activity with or
without compensation, wages or profit. Such participation could be
physical or mental or both. This work includes part-time help or unpaid
work on the farm, family enterprise or in any other economic activity such
as cultivation and milk production for sale or domestic consumption.
Indian government classifies child laborers into two groups: Main workers
are those who work 6 months or more per year. And marginal child
workers are those who work at any time during the year but less than 6
months in a year.
Some child rights activists argue that child labour must include every child
who is not in school because he or she is a hidden child worker. UNICEF,
however, points out that India faces major shortages of schools, classrooms
and teachers particularly in rural areas where 90 percent of child labour
problem is observed. About 1 in 5 primary schools have just one teacher to
teach students across all grades

MEANING
Child labour refers to the employment of children in any
work that deprives children of their childhood, interferes with their ability
to attend regular school, and that is mentally, physically, socially or
morally dangerous and harmful. This practice is considered exploitative by
many international organisations. Legislations across the world prohibit child
labour. These laws do not consider all work by children as child labour;
exceptions include work by child artists, supervised training, certain
categories of work such as those by Amish children, some forms of child
work common among indigenous American children, and others.

Child labour was employed to varying extents through most

of history. Before 1940, numerous children aged 5–14 worked in Europe,
the United States and various colonies of European powers. These children
worked in agriculture, home-based assembly operations, factories, mining
and in services such as newsies. Some worked night shifts lasting 12 hours.
With the rise of household income, availability of schools and passage of
child labour laws, the incidence rates of child labour fell.

In developing countries, with high poverty and poor schooling

opportunities, child labour is still prevalent. In 2010, sub-saharan Africa had the
highest incidence rates of child labour; with several African nations
witnessing over 50 percent of children aged 5–14 working. Worldwide
agriculture is the largest employer of child labour. Vast majority of child
labour is found in rural settings and informal urban economy; children are
predominantly employed by their parents, rather than factories. Poverty
and lack of schools are considered as the primary cause of child labour.

The incidence of child labour in the world decreased from 25% to

10% between 1960 and 2003, according to the World Bank. Nevertheless, the
total number of child labourers remains high,
with UNICEF and ILO acknowledging an estimated 168 million children aged
5–17 worldwide, were involved in child labour in 2013
EFFECTS
For much of human history and across different cultures, children less than
17 years old have contributed to family welfare in a variety of ways.
UNICEF suggests that poverty is the big cause of child labour. The report
also notes that in rural and impoverished parts of developing and
undeveloped parts of the world, children have no real and meaningful
alternative. Schools and teachers are unavailable. Child labour is the
unnatural result. A BBC report, similarly, concludes poverty and
inadequate public education infrastructure are some of the causes of child
labour in India.
Between boys and girls, UNICEF finds girls are two times more likely to
be out of school and working in a domestic role. Parents with limited
resources, claims UNICEF, have to choose whose school costs and fees they
can afford when a school is available. Educating girls tends to be a lower
priority across the world, including India. Girls are also harassed or bullied
at schools, sidelined by prejudice or poor curricula, according to UNICEF.
Solely by virtue of their gender, therefore, many girls are kept from school
or drop out, then provide child labour.
The International Labour Organisation (ILO) and Spreading Smiles
Through Education Organisation (OSSE) suggests poverty is the greatest
single force driving children into the workplace. Income from a child's
work is felt to be crucial for his/her own survival or for that of the
household. For some families, income from their children's labour is
between 25 to 40% of the household income.
According to a 2008 study by ILO, among the most important factors
driving children to harmful labour is the lack of availability and quality of
schooling. Many communities, particularly rural areas do not possess
adequate school facilities. Even when schools are sometimes available, they
are too far away, difficult to reach, unaffordable or the quality of education
is so poor that parents wonder if going to school is really worthwhile. In
government-run primary schools, even when children show up,
government-paid teachers do not show up 25% of the time. The 2008 ILO
study suggests that illiteracy resulting from a child going to work, rather
than a quality primary and secondary school, limits the child's ability to get
a basic educational grounding which would in normal situations enable
them to acquire skills and to improve their prospects for a decent adult
working life. An albeit older report published by UNICEF outlines the
issues summarized by the ILO report. The UNICEF report claimed that
while 90% of child labour in India is in its rural areas, the availability and
quality of schools is decrepit; in rural areas of India, claims the old UNICEF
report, about 50% of government funded primary schools that exist do not
have a building, 40% lack a blackboard, few have books, and 97% of funds
for these publicly funded school have been budgeted by the government as
salaries for the teacher and administrators. A 2012 Wall Street Journal
article reports while the enrollment in India's school has dramatically
increased in recent years to over 96% of all children in the 6-14-year age
group, the infrastructure in schools, aimed in part to reduce child labour,
remains poor - over 81,000 schools do not have a blackboard and about
42,000 government schools operate without a building with make shift
arrangements during monsoons and inclement weather.
Biggeri and Mehrotra have studied the macroeconomic factors that
encourage child labour. They focus their study on five Asian nations
including India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Thailand and Philippines. They
suggest that child labour is a serious problem in all five, but it is not a new
problem. Macroeconomic causes encouraged widespread child labour
across the world, over most of human history. They suggest that the causes
for child labour include both the demand and the supply side. While
poverty and unavailability of good schools explain the child labour supply
side, they suggest that the growth of low paying informal economy rather
than higher paying formal economy - called organised economy in India - is
amongst the causes of the demand side. India has rigid labour laws and
numerous regulations that prevent growth of organised sector where work
protections are easier to monitor, and work more productive and higher
paying. The unintended effect of Indian complex labour laws is the work
has shifted to the unorganised, informal sector. As a result, after the
unorganised agriculture sector which employs 60% of child labour, it is the
unorganised trade, unorganised assembly and unorganised retail work that is
the largest employer of child labour. If macroeconomic factors and laws
prevent growth of formal sector, the family owned informal sector grows,
deploying low cost, easy to hire, easy to dismiss labour in form of child
labour. Even in situations where children are going to school, claim Biggeri
and Mehrotra, children engage in routine after-school home-based
manufacturing and economic activity. Other scholars too suggest that
inflexibility and structure of India's labour market, size of informal
economy, inability of industries to scale up and lack of modern
manufacturing technologies are major macroeconomic factors affecting
demand and acceptability of child labour.
Cigno et al. suggest the government planned and implemented land
redistribution programs in India, where poor families were given small
plots of land with the idea of enabling economic independence, have had
the unintended effect of increased child labour. They find that smallholder
plots of land are labour-intensively farmed since small plots cannot
productively afford expensive farming equipment. In these cases, a means
to increase output from the small plot has been to apply more labour,
including child labour
 Effects through technological change
 Effects through income inequality
 Effects through gender inequality
 Impact on foreign direct investment
 Child labour impact on adult labour market
 Impact on adult unemployment or wage rate
DISADVANTAGES
CHILD LABOUR IMPACT ON LONG RUN GROWTH AND
DEVELOPMENT

Having discussed the short and the long run economic impact of child
labour at the family level, in the present section we analyse the effects of
child labour on long-run growth. A review of the theoretical and empirical
literature on child labour has lead us to the identification of at least six
channels through which child labour might have a negative impact on long
run growth: lower human capital accumulation, higher fertility, worse
health, slower investment and technical change, higher income and gender
inequality (see Figure 1).7 DISCUSSION PAPERS SERIES NO. 128

HARMFUL TO THE CHILD

In May 2002, the ILO issued a new Global report on Child labour that
describes the extent of the problem. Almost 250 million children, about
one in every six children aged 5 to 17 on the face of the globe, are
involved in child labour. Of these, some 179 million (one in eight) are
trapped in the “worst forms” of child labour. The worst form are those
that endanger the child’s physical, mental or moral well-being.
Children can be found in almost any economic sector. However, at a
global level, most of them are in agriculture (70%). Some hazards in
agriculture are the exposure to pesticides, the use of dangerous
machinery or tools (like knives), carrying heavy loads, the presence of
snakes, and so on. Children working in agriculture are the ones suffering
most injuries. And one of the sad characteristics of child labour in
agriculture are the few, if any opportunities for advance or change.
For children working as domestic labourers, the hazards are sometimes
not that obvious. Here, it can be the psychological hazards, like isolation,
abuse, exploitation that make this form dangerous. Domestic labour is
often called “hidden” and it is often difficult to find those children.
Other sectors where children are working (although not in large
proportion) are mining (1%) and construction (2%). The work done is
generally very dangerous for children.
Children are often “achievers”, they want to perform well, go that extra
mile, and are inexperienced and untrained in dealing with hazards.
Tools are not made for them, and thus pose more hazards. There are no
personal protection devices for children. Additionally, they are also not
organized and powerless. Girls are at special risk. They often begin to
work at a younger age and have a double work burden (at home and in
the fields). They frequently work longer hours, and in different cultural
settings may get poorer nutrition.
Occupational hazards cause not only short-term health effects (mainly
injuries, skin problems, etc.), but most effects are long-term and will only
become evident in adulthood. Therefore, they are difficult to measure
and to quantify. Cancer, infertility, chronic back pain and IQ reduction
are some of the expected long-term outcomes.
Health professionals are in a key position to identify children at risk,
advise the parents on ways to reduce this risk and recommend action to
policy-makers. They should be able to recognize and assess the
occupational and environmental health threats present in the places
where children live, learn and play, and work, in the urban and rural
communities. They should also know that these threats increase in low-
income populations and minority communities, and in degraded
environments. In combating hazardous child labour the most important
challenge is the translation of knowledge and legislation into action,
moving good intention and ideas into protecting the health of the
children. For this, the involvement of the relevant stakeholders like
health and safety experts (they know about hazards and health
outcomes), labour inspectors (they know how to enforce the law) and
general health experts (they know about the vulnerability and health
outcomes in the child and are the first-line care givers), is absolutely
essential.
The elimination of child labour is a long-term objective. However, in the
meanwhile, we cannot allow that children are injured or harmed at work
in their struggle for survival, especially when we have the knowledge
and means to prevent this
LAWS & ACTS PASSED BY THE GOVERNMENT
After its independence from colonial rule, India has passed a number of
constitutional protections and laws on child labour. The Constitution of
India in the Fundamental Rights and the Directive of State Policy prohibits
child labour below the age of 14 years in any factory or mine or castle or
engaged in any other hazardous employment (Article 24). The constitution
also envisioned that India shall, by 1960, provide infrastructure and
resources for free and compulsory education to all children of the age six to
14 years. (Article 21-A and Article 45).
India has a federal form of government, and child labour is a matter on
which both the central government and country governments can legislate,
and have. The major national legislative developments include the
following:
The Factories Act of 1948: The Act prohibits the employment of children
below the age of 14 years in any factory. The law also placed rules on who,
when and how long can pre-adults aged 15–18 years be employed in any
factory.
The Mines Act of 1952: The Act prohibits the employment of children
below 18 years of age in a mine.
The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act of 1986: The Act
prohibits the employment of children below the age of 14 years in
hazardous occupations identified in a list by the law. The list was
expanded in 2006, and again in 2008.
The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection) of Children Act of 2000 : This
law made it a crime, punishable with a prison term, for anyone to procure
or employ a child in any hazardous employment or in bondage.
The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act of 2009:
The law mandates free and compulsory education to all children aged 6 to
14 years. This legislation also mandated that 25 percent of seats in every
private school must be allocated for children from disadvantaged groups
and physically challenged children.
India formulated a National Policy on Child Labour in 1987. This Policy
seeks to adopt a gradual & sequential approach with a focus on

Rehabilitation of children working in hazardous occupations. It

envisioned strict enforcement of Indian laws on child labour combined
with development programs to address the root causes of child labour such
as poverty. In 1988, this led to the National Child Labour Project (NCLP)
initiative. This legal and development initiative continues, with a current
central government funding of 6 billion, targeted solely to eliminate child
labour in India. Despite these efforts, child labour remains a major
challenge for India.
The Indian Penal Code (IPC) 1860 finds that no child below the age of
seven may be held criminally responsible for an action (Sec 82 IPC). In case
of mental disability or inability to understand the consequences of one's
actions the criminal responsibility age is raised to twelve years (Sec 83 IPC).
A girl must be of at least sixteen years in order to give sexual consent,
unless she is married, in which case the prescribed age is no less that
fifteen. With regard to protection against kidnapping, abduction and
related offenses the given age is sixteen for boys and eighteen for girls.

According to Article 21 (a) of the Indian Constitution all children between

the ages of six to fourteen should be provided with free and compulsory
education. Article 45 states that the state should provide early childhood
care and education to all children below the age of six. Lastly Article 51(k)
states the parents/guardians of the children between the ages of six and
fourteen should provide them with opportunities for education.

The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 defines a child as
a person who has not completed fourteen years of age. The Factories Act,
1948 and Plantation Labour Act 1951 states that a child is one that has not
completed fifteen years of age and an adolescent is one who has completed
fifteen years of age but has not completed eighteen years of age. According
to the Factories Act adolescents are allowed to work in factories as long as
they are deemed medically fit but may not for more than four and half
hours a day. The Motor Transport Workers Act 1961, and The Beedi And
Cigar Workers (Conditions Of Employment) Act 1966, both define a child
as a person who has not completed fourteen years of age. The Merchant
Shipping Act 1958 and Apprentices Act 1961 don't define a child, but in
provisions of the act state that a child below fourteen is not permitted to
work in occupations of the act. The Mines Act, 1952 is the only labour
related act that defines adult as person who has completed eighteen years
of age (hence a child is a person who has not completed eighteen years of
age).

The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 states that a male has not
reached majority until he is twenty-one years of age and a female has not
reached majority until she is eighteen years of age. The Indian Majority
Act, 1875 was enacted to create a blanket definition of a minor for such acts
as the Guardians and Wards Act of 1890. Under the Indian Majority Act,
1875 a person has not attainted majority until he or she is of eighteen years
of age. This definition of a minor also stands for both the Hindu Minority
and Guardianship Act, 1956 and the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance
Act, 1956. Muslim, Christian and Zoroastrian personal law also upholds
eighteen as the age of majority. The first Juvenile Justice Act, 1986 defined a
boy child as below sixteen years of age and a girl child as below eighteen
years of age. The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act,
2000 has changed the definition of child to any person who has not
completed eighteen years of age.
Because of its umbrella clauses and because it is the latest law to be enacted
regarding child rights and protection, many are of the opinion that the
definition of child found in the Juvenile Justice Act, 2000 should be
considered the legal definition for a child in all matters.
STATISTICS
Number of children involved in ILO categories of work, by age and gender
in 2002

Children
All Economically
Economically Child Child In Children In
Children Active
Active Labour Labour Hazardous Hazardous
('000s) Children
Children (%) ('000s) (%) Work Work (%)
(2002)[137] ('000s)
('000s)

Ages
838,800 109,700 13.1 109,700 13.1 60,500 7.2
5–11

Ages
12– 360,600 101,100 28.0 76,000 21.1 50,800 14.1
14

Ages
1,199,400 210,800 17.6 186,300 15.5 111,300 9.3
5–14

Ages
15– 332,100 140,900 42.4 59,200 17.8 59,200 17.8
17

Boys 786,600 184,100 23.4 132,200 16.8 95,700 12.2

Girls 744,900 167,600 22.5 113,300 15.2 74,800 10.5

Total 1,531,500 351,700 23.0 245,500 16.0 170,500 11.1

ELIMINATING CHILD LABOUR

Child labour in a coal mine, United States, c. 1912. Photograph by Lewis

Hine.

Different forms of child labour in Central America, 1999.

Concerns have often been raised over the buying public's moral complicity
in purchasing products assembled or otherwise manufactured
in developing countries with child labour. However, others have raised
concerns that boycotting products manufactured through child labour may
force these children to turn to more dangerous or strenuous professions,
such as prostitution or agriculture. For example, A UNICEF study found
that after the Child Labour Deterrence Act was introduced in the US, an
estimated 50,000 children were dismissed from their garment industry jobs
in Bangladesh, leaving many to resort to jobs such as "stone-crushing,
street hustling, and prostitution", jobs that are "more hazardous and
exploitative than garment production". The study suggests that boycotts
are "blunt instruments with long-term consequences that can actually harm
rather than help the children involved.
According to Milton Friedman, before the Industrial Revolution virtually
all children worked in agriculture, During the Industrial Revolution many
of these children moved from farm work to factory work. Over time, as real
wages rose, parents became able to afford to send their children to school
instead of work and as a result child labour declined, both before and after
legislation.[129] School economist Murray Rothbard said that British and
American children of the pre- and post-Industrial Revolution lived and
suffered in infinitely worse conditions where jobs were not available for
them and went "voluntarily and gladly" to work in factories.[130]
British historian and socialist E. P. Thompson in The Making of the English
Working Class draws a qualitative distinction between child domestic
work and participation in the wider (waged) labour market.[18] Further,
the usefulness of the experience of the industrial revolution in making
predictions about current trends has been disputed. Social historian Hugh
Cunningham, author of Children and Childhood in Western Society Since
1500, notes that:
"Fifty years ago it might have been assumed that, just as child labour
had declined in the developed world in the late nineteenth and early
twentieth centuries, so it would also, in a trickle-down fashion, in the
rest of the world. Its failure to do that, and its re-emergence in the
developed world, raise questions about its role in any economy,
whether national or global."[129]
The International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC),
founded in 1992, aims to eliminate child labour. It operates in 88 countries
and is the largest program of its kind in the world.[132] IPEC works with
international and government agencies, NGOs, the media, and children
and their families to end child labour and provide children with education
and assistance.[132]
From 2008 to 2013, the ILO operated a program through International
Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) titled " Combating
Abusive Child Labour (CACL-II) ". The project, funded by the European
Union, contributed to the Government of Pakistan by providing alternative
opportunities for vocational training and education to children withdrawn
from the worst forms of child labour.[1
Exceptions granted
In 2004, the United States passed an amendment to the Fair Labour
Standards Act of 1938. The amendment allows certain children aged 14 –18
to work in or outside a business where machinery is used to process
wood.[78] The law aims to respect the religious and cultural needs of
the Amish community of the United States. The Amish believe that one
effective way to educate children is on the job.[6] The new law allows
Amish children the ability to work with their families, once they are past
eighth grade in school.
Similarly, in 1996, member countries of the European Union, per Directive
94/33/EC,[8] agreed to a number of exceptions for young people in its
child labour laws. Under these rules, children of various ages may work in
cultural, artistic, sporting or advertising activities if authorised by
competent authority. Children above the age of 13 may perform light work
for a limited number of hours per week in other economic activities as
defined at the discretion of each country. Additionally, the European law
exception allows children aged 14 years or over to work as part of a
work/training scheme. The EU Directive clarified that these exceptions do
not allow child labour where the children may experience harmful
exposure to dangerous substances.[79] Nonetheless, many children under
the age of 13 do work, even in the most developed countries of the EU. For
instance, a recent study showed over a third of Dutch twelve-year-old kids
had a job

CHILD LABOUR LAWS AND INITIATIVES

Almost every country in the world has laws relating to and aimed at
preventing child labour. International Labour Organisation has helped set
international law, which most countries have signed on and ratified.
According to ILO minimum age convention (C138) of 1973, child labour
refers to any work performed by children under the age of 12, non-light
work done by children aged 12–14, and hazardous work done by children
aged 15–17. Light work was defined, under this Convention, as any work
that does not harm a child's health and development, and that does not
interfere with his or her attendance at school. This convention has been
ratified by 135 countries.
The United Nations adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child in
1990, which was subsequently ratified by 193 countries. Article 32 of the
convention addressed child labour, as follows:
...Parties recognise the right of the child to be protected from economic
exploitation and from performing any work that is likely to be hazardous
or to interfere with the child's education, or to be harmful to the child's
health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral or social development.
Under Article 1 of the 1990 Convention, a child is defined as "... every
human being below the age of eighteen years unless, under the law
applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier." Article 28 of this
Convention requires States to, "make primary education compulsory and
available free to all."
Three countries that have not ratified the 1990 Convention
are Somalia, South Sudan and the United States.
In 1999, ILO helped lead the Worst Forms Convention 182 (C182), which
has so far been signed upon and domestically ratified by 151 countries
including the United States. This international law prohibits worst forms of
child labour, defined as all forms of slavery and slavery-like practices, such
as child trafficking, debt bondage, and forced labour, including forced
recruitment of children into armed conflict. The law also prohibits use of a
child for prostitution or the production of pornography, child labour in
illicit activities such as drug production and trafficking; and in hazardous
work. Both the Worst Forms Convention 182 (C182) and the Minimum Age
Convention (C138) are examples of standards implemented through the
ILO that deal with child labour.
In addition to setting the international law, the United Nations initiated
International Program on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) in
1992.[76] This initiative aims to progressively eliminate child labour
through strengthening national capacities to address some of the causes of
child labour. Amongst the key initiative is the so-called time bounded
program countries, where child labour is most prevalent and schooling
opportunities lacking. The initiative seeks to achieve amongst other things,
universal primary school availability. The IPEC has expanded to at least
the following target countries: Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Egypt, India,
Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Democratic Republic of Congo, El
Salvador, Nepal, Tanzania, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Philippines,
Senegal, South Africa and Turkey.
Targeted child labour campaigns were initiated by the International Programme
on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) in order to advocate for prevention and
elimination of all forms of child labour. The global Music against Child
Labour Initiative was launched in 2013 in order to involve socially
excluded children in structured musical activity and education in efforts to
help protect them from child labour
CAUSES OF CHILD LABOUR

Primary causes
International Labour Organisation (ILO) suggests poverty is the greatest
single cause behind child labour.[15] For impoverished households, income
from a child's work is usually crucial for his or her own survival or for that
of the household. Income from working children, even if small, may be
between 25 to 40% of this household income. Other scholars such as Harsch
on African child labour, and Edmonds and Pavcnik on global child labour
have reached the same conclusion.
Lack of meaningful alternatives, such as affordable schools and quality
education, according to ILO, is another major factor driving children to
harmful labour. Children work because they have nothing better to do.
Many communities, particularly rural areas where between 60–70% of
child labour is prevalent, do not possess adequate school facilities. Even
when schools are sometimes available, they are too far away, difficult to
reach, unaffordable or the quality of education is so poor that parents
wonder if going to school is really worth it.
Cultural causes
In European history when child labour was common, as well as in
contemporary child labour of modern world, certain cultural beliefs have
rationalized child labour and thereby encouraged it. Some view that work
is good for the character-building and skill development of children. In
many cultures, particular where informal economy and small household
businesses thrive, the cultural tradition is that children follow in their
parents' footsteps; child labour then is a means to learn and practice that
trade from a very early age. Similarly, in many cultures the education of
girls is less valued or girls are simply not expected to need formal
schooling, and these girls pushed into child labour such as providing
domestic services.

Child labour in Brazil, leaving after collecting recyclables from a landfill.

Agriculture deploys 70% of the world's child labour. Above, child worker
on a rice farm in Vietnam.
Macroeconomic causes
Biggeri and Mehrotra have studied the macroeconomic factors that
encourage child labour. They focus their study on five Asian nations
including India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Thailand and Philippines. They
suggest that child labour is a serious problem in all five, but it is not a new
problem. Macroeconomic causes encouraged widespread child labour
across the world, over most of human history. They suggest that the causes
for child labour include both the demand and the supply side. While
poverty and unavailability of good schools explain the child labour supply
side, they suggest that the growth of low paying informal economy rather
than higher paying formal economy is amongst the causes of the demand
side. Other scholars too suggest that inflexible labour market, sise of
informal economy, inability of industries to scale up and lack of modern
manufacturing technologies are major macroeconomic factors affecting
demand and acceptability of child labour.
Child labour is still common in many parts of the world. Estimates for
child labour vary. It ranges between 250 to 304 million; if children aged 5–
17 involved in any economic activity are counted. If light occasional work
is excluded, ILO estimates there were 153 million child labourers aged 5 –14
worldwide in 2008. This is about 20 million less than ILO estimate for child
labourers in 2004. Some 60 percent of the child labour was involved in
agricultural activities such as farming, dairy, fisheries and forestry.
Another 25 percent of child labourers were in service activities such as
retail, hawking goods, restaurants, load and transfer of goods, storage,
picking and recycling trash, polishing shoes, domestic help, and other
services. The remaining 15 percent laboured in assembly and
manufacturing in informal economy, home-based enterprises, factories,
mines, packaging salt, operating machinery, and such operations. Two out
of three child workers work alongside their parents, in unpaid family work
situations. Some children work as guides for tourists, sometimes combined
with bringing in business for shops and restaurants. Child labour
predominantly occurs in the rural areas (70%) and informal urban sector
(26%).Contrary to popular beliefs, most child labourers are employed by
their parents rather than in manufacturing or formal economy. Children
who work for pay or in-kind compensation are usually found in rural
settings, than urban centers. Less than 3 percent of child labour aged 5 –14
across the world work outside their household, or away from their parents.
Child labour accounts for 22% of the workforce in Asia, 32% in Africa, 17%
in Latin America, 1% in US, Canada, Europe and other wealthy
nations. The proportion of child labourers varies greatly among countries
and even regions inside those countries. Africa has the highest percentage
of children aged 5–17 employed as child labour, and a total of over 65
million. Asia, with its larger population, has the largest number of children
employed as child labour at about 114 million. Latin America and
Caribbean region has lower overall population density, but at 14 million
child labourers has high incidence rates too.

Accurate present day child labour information is difficult to

obtain because of disagreements between data sources as to what
constitutes child labour. In some countries, government policy contributes
to this difficulty. For example, the overall extent of child labour in China is
unclear due to the government categorizing child labour data as “highly
secret”. China has enacted regulations to prevent child labour; still, the
practice of child labour is reported to be a persistent problem within China,
generally in agriculture and low-skill service sectors as well as small
workshops and manufacturing enterprises.
Maplecroft Child Labour Index 2012 survey reports 76 countries pose
extreme child labour complicity risks for companies operating worldwide.
The ten highest risk countries in 2012, ranked in decreasing order, were:
Myanmar, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan, DR Congo, Zimbabwe,
Afghanistan, Burundi, Pakistan and Ethiopia. Of the major growth
economies, Maplecroft ranked Philippines 25th riskiest, India 27th, China
36th, Viet Nam 37th, Indonesia 46th, and Brazil 54th - all of them rated to
involve extreme risks of child labour uncertainties, to corporations seeking
to invest in developing world and import products from emerging
markets.
CHILD LABOUR INCIDENTS

Cocoa production
Main articles: Children in cocoa production and Harkin-Engel Protocol
In 1998, UNICEF reported that Ivory Coast farmers used enslaved children –
many from surrounding countries, In late 2000 a BBC documentary
reported the use of enslaved children in the production of cocoa—the main
ingredient in chocolate— in West Africa. Other media followed by reporting
widespread child slavery and child trafficking in the production of cocoa. In 2001,
the US State Department estimated there were 15,000 child slaves cocoa, cotton
and coffee farms in the Ivory Coast,[96] and the Chocolate Manufacturers
Association acknowledged that child slavery is used in the cocoa harvest [not
in citation given][better source needed]
Malian migrants have long worked on cocoa farms in the Ivory Coast, but in
2000 cocoa prices had dropped to a 10-year low and some farmers stopped
paying their employees. The Malian counsel had to rescue some boys who
had not been paid for five years and who were beaten if they tried to run
away. Malian officials believed that 15,000 children, some as young as 11
years old, were working in the Ivory Coast in 2001. These children were
often from poor families or the slums and were sold to work in other
countries. Parents were told the children would find work and send money
home, but once the children left home, they often worked in conditions
resembling slavery. In other cases, children begging for food were lured
from bus stations and sold as slaves. In 2002, the Ivory Coast had 12,000
children with no relatives nearby, which suggested they were trafficked,
likely from neighboring Mali, Burkina Faso and Togo.
The cocoa industry was accused of profiting from child slavery and
trafficking. The European Cocoa Association dismissed these accusations
as "false and excessive" and the industry said the reports were not
representative of all areas. Later the industry acknowledged the working
conditions for children were unsatisfactory and children's rights were
sometimes violated and acknowledged the claims could not be ignored. In
a BBC interview, the ambassador for Ivory Coast to the United Kingdom
called these reports of widespread use of slave child labour by 700,000
cocoa farmers as absurd and inaccurate.
In 2001, a voluntary agreement called the Harkin-Engel Protocol, was accepted
by the international cocoa and chocolate industry to eliminate the worst
forms of child labour, as defined by ILO's Convention 182, in West Africa. This
agreement created a foundation named International Cocoa Initiative in
2002. The foundation claims it has, as of 2011, active programs in 290 cocoa
growing communities in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana, reaching a total
population of 689,000 people to help eliminate the worst forms of child
labour in cocoa industry. Other organisations claim progress has been
made, but the protocol's 2005 deadlines have not yet been met

BONDED CHILD LABOUR IN INDIA

Srivastava describes bonded child labour as a system of forced, or partly

forced, labour under which the child, or usually child's parent enter into an
agreement, oral or written, with a creditor. The child performs work as in-
kind repayment of credit. In this 2005 ILO report, Srivastava claims debt-
bondage in India emerged during the colonial period, as a means to obtain
reliable cheap labour, with loan and land-lease relationships implemented
during that era of Indian history. These were regionally called Hali,
or Halwaha, or Jeura systems; and by colonial administration
the indentured labour system. These systems included bonded child labour.
Over time, claims the ILO report, this traditional form of long-duration
relationships have declined.
In 1977, India passed legislation that prohibits solicitation or use of bonded
labour by anyone, of anyone including children. Evidence of continuing
bonded child labour continue. A report by the Special Rapporteur to India's
National Human Rights Commission, reported the discovery of 53 child
labourers in 1996 in the state of Tamil Nadu during a surprise inspection.
Each child or the parent had taken an advance of Rs. 10,0000 to 25,0000.
The children were made to work for 12 to 14 hours a day and received only
Rs. 2 to 3 per day as wages.[48][49] According to an ILO report, the extent of
bonded child labour is difficult to determine, but estimates from various
social activist groups range up to 350,000 in 2001
Despite its legislation, prosecutors in India seldom use the Bonded Labour
System (Abolition) Act of 1976 to prosecute those responsible. According to
one report, the prosecutors have no direction from the central government
that if a child is found to be underpaid, the case should be prosecuted not
only under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 and the Child Labour
(Prohibition & Regulation) Act, 1986, the case should include charges
under the Bonded Labour Act of India. The few enforcement actions have
had some unintended effects. While there has been a decrease in children
working in factories because of enforcement and community vigilance
committees, the report claims poverty still compels children and poor
families to work. The factory lends money to whoever needs it, puts a loom
in the person’s home, and then the family with children works out of their
homes, bring finished product to pay interest and get some wages. The
bonded child and family labour operations were moving out of small
urban factories into rural homes

CONSEQUENCES OF CHILD LABOUR

The presence of a large number of child labourers is regarded as a serious
issue in terms of economic welfare. Children who work fail to get necessary
education. They do not get the opportunity to develop physically,
intellectually, emotionally and psychologically. In terms of the physical
condition of children, children are not ready for long monotous work
because they become exhausted more quickly than adults. This reduces
their physical conditions and makes the children more vulnerable to
disease. Children in hazardous working conditions are even in worse
condition. Children who work, instead of going to school, will remain
illiterate which limits their ability to contribute to their own well being as
well as to community they live in. Child labour has long term adverse
effects for India.
To keep an economy prospering, a vital criteria is to have an educated
workforce equipped with relevant skills for the needs of the industries. The
young labourers today, will be part of India’s human capital tomorrow.
Child labour undoubtedly results in a trade-off with human capital
accumulation.
Child labour in India are employed with the majority (70%) in
agriculture some in low-skilled labour-intensive sectors such as sari
weaving or as domestic helpers, which require neither formal education
nor training, but some in heavy industry such as coal mining.
According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), there are
tremendous economic benefits for developing nations by sending children
to school instead of work. Without education, children do not gain the
necessary skills such as English literacy and technical aptitude that will
increase their productivity to enable them to secure higher-skilled jobs in
future with higher wages that will lift them out of poverty.
DIAMOND INDUSTRY
In the year 1999, the International Labour Organisation co-published a
report with Universal Alliance of Diamond Workers, a trade union. The
ILO report claimed that child labour is prevalent in the Indian diamond
industry. International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) in a
separate 1997 press release observed that child labour continued to flourish
in India's diamond industry. Not everyone agreed with these claims. The
South Gujarat Diamond Workers Association, another trade union,
acknowledged child labour is present but it is not systematic, is less than
1% and against local industry norms. Local diamond industry businessmen
too downplayed these charges.
According to the 1999 ILO paper, India annually cuts and polishes 70 per
cent of the world’s diamonds by weight, or 40 per cent by value.
Additionally, India contributes 95 percent of the emeralds, 85 percent of the
rubies, and 65 percent of the sapphires worldwide. India processes these
diamonds and gems using traditional labour-intensive methods. About 1.5
million people are employed in the diamond industry, mostly in
the unorganized sector. The industry is fragmented into small units, each
employing a few workers. The industry has not scaled up, organised, and
big operators absent. The ILO paper claims that this is to avoid the
complex labour laws of India. The export order is split, work is
subcontracted through many middlemen, and most workers do not know
the name of enterprise with the export order. In this environment, claims
the ILO report, exact number of child labourers in India's diamond and
gem industry is unknown; they estimate that child labourers in 1997 were
between 10,00 to 20,00 out of 1.5 million total workers (about 1 in 100). The
ILO report claims the causes for child labour include parents who send
their children to work because they see education as expensive, education
quality offering no real value, while artisan work in diamond and gem
industry to be more remunerative as the child grows up.
A more recent study from 2005, conducted at 663 manufacturing units at 21
different locations in India's diamond and gem industry, claims incidence
rates of child labour have dropped to 0.31%.

FIREWORKS MANUFACTURE
The town of Sivakasi in South India has been reported to employ child
labour in the production of fireworks. In 2011, Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu was
home to over 9,500 firecracker factories and produced almost 100 percent
of total fireworks output in India. The fireworks industry employed about
150,000 people at an average of 15 employees per factory. Most of these
were in unorganised sector, with a few registered and organised
companies.
In 1989, Shubh Bhardwaj reported that child labour is present in India's
fireworks industry, and safety practices poor. Child labour is common in
small shed operation in the unorganized sector. Only 4 companies scaled
up and were in the organised sector with over 250 employees; the larger
companies did not employ children and had superior safety practices and
resources. The child labour in small, unorganised sector operations
suffered long working hours, low wages, unsafe conditions and tiring
schedules.
A more recent 2002 report by International Labour Organisation
claims that child labour is significant in Tamil Nadu's fireworks, matches
or incense sticks industries. However, these children do not work in the
formal economy and corporate establishments that produce for export. The
child labourers in manufacturing typically toil in supply chains producing
for the domestic market of fireworks, matches or incense sticks. The ILO
report claims that as the demand for these products has grown, the formal
economy and corporate establishments have not expanded to meet the
demand, rather home-based production operations have mushroomed.
This has increased the potential of child labour. Such hidden operations
make research and effective action difficult, suggests ILO.

SILK MANUFACTURE
A 2003 Human Rights Watch report claims children as young as five years
old are employed and work for up to 12 hours a day and six to seven days
a week in silk industry. These children, claims, are bonded labour; even
though the government of India denies existence of bonded child labour,
these silk industry child are easy to find in Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu,
claims Children are forced to dip their hands in scalding water
to palpate the cocoons and are often paid less than Rs 10 per day.
In 2010, a German news investigative report claimed that in states
like Karnataka, non-governmental organisations had found up to 10,000
children working in the 1,000 silk factories in 1998. In other places,
thousands of bonded child labourers were present in 1994. But today, after
UNICEF and NGOs got involved, child labour figure is drastically lower,
with the total estimated to be fewer than a thousand child labourers. The
released children were back in school, claims the report.
CARPET WEAVING
Siddartha Kara finds about 20% of carpets manufactured in India could
involve child labour. He notes, "determining the extent to which the hand-
made carpet supply chain from India to the U.S.A. is tainted by slavery and
child labor requires an additional exercise in supply chain tracing." Kara's
study also finds variation in child labour practices between ethnic and
religious groups. Kara and colleagues report highest level of child labour in
Muslim community carpet operations, and the presence of debt bonded
child labourers in Muslim villages.
DOMESTIC LABOUR
Official estimates for child labour working as domestic labour and in
restaurants is more than 2,500,000 while NGOs estimate the figure to be
around 20 million. The Government of India expanded the coverage of The
Child Labour Prohibition and Regulation Act and banned the employment
of children as domestic workers and as workers in restaurants, dhabas,
hotels, spas and resorts effective from 10 October 2006.
COAL MINING
Despite laws enacted in 1952 prohibiting employment of people under the
age of 18 in the mines primitive coal mines in Meghalaya using child
Labour were discovered and exposed by the international media in 2013.

INITIATIVES AGAINST CHILD LABOUR

In 1979, the Indian government formed the Gurupadswamy Committee to

find about child labour and means to tackle it. The Child Labour
Prohibition and Regulation Act was not enacted based on the
recommendations of the committee in 1986.[citation needed] A National
Policy on Child Labour was formulated in 1987 to focus on rehabilitating
children working in hazardous occupations. The Ministry of Labour and
Employment had implemented around 100 industry-specific National
Child Labour Projects to rehabilitate the child workers since 1988.

NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS
Many NGOs like Bachpan Bachao Andolan, CARE India, Talaash
Association Child Rights and You, Global march against child labour, RIDE
India etc. have been working to eradicate child labour in India.
Pratham is India's largest non-governmental organisation with the mission
'every child in school and learning well.' Founded in 1994, Pratham has
aimed to reduce child labour and offer schooling to children irrespective of
their gender, religion and social background. It has grown by introducing
low cost education models that are sustainable and reproducible. Child
labour has also been a subject of public interest litigations in Indian courts.

DEMOGRAPHY OF CHILD LABOUR

According to 2005 Government of India NSSO (National Sample Survey
Org.), child labour incidence rates in India is highest among Muslim
Indians, about 40% higher than Hindu Indians. Child labour was found to
be present in other minority religions of India but at significantly lower
rates. Across caste classification, the lowest caste Dalit children had child
labour incidence rates of 2.8%, statistically similar to the nationwide
average of 2.74%. Tribal populations, however, had higher child labour
rates at 3.8%.

ORGANISATION WORKS AGAINST CHILD LABOUR

UNICEF: (United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund)

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is a United Nations

Program headquartered in New York City that provides long
term humanitarian and developmental assistance
to children and mothers in developing countries. It is one of the members
of the United Nations Development Group and its Executive Committee.
UNICEF was created by the United Nations General Assembly on
December 11, 1946, to provide emergency food and healthcare to children
in countries that had been devastated by World War II. In 1953, UNICEF
became a permanent part of the United Nations System and its name was
shortened from the original United Nations International Children's
Emergency Fund but it has continued to be known by the
popular acronym based on this previous title.
UNICEF relies on contributions from governments and private donors and
UNICEF's total income for 2008 was $3,372,540,239.Governments
contribute two thirds of the organization's resources; private groups and
some 6 million individuals contribute the rest through the National
Committees. It is estimated that 91.8% of their revenue is distributed to
Program Services. UNICEF's programs emphasize developing community-
level services to promote the health and well-being of children. UNICEF
was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1965 and the Prince of Asturias
Award of Concord in 2006.
Most of UNICEF's work is in the field, with staff in over 190 countries and
territories. More than 200 country offices carry out UNICEF's mission
through a program developed with host governments. Seventeen regional
offices provide technical assistance to country offices as needed.
Overall management and administration of the organization takes place at
its headquarters in New York. UNICEF's Supply Division is based
in Copenhagen and serves as the primary point of distribution for such
essential items as vaccines, antiretroviral medicines for children and
mothers with HIV, nutritional supplements, emergency shelters,
educational supplies, among others. A 36-member Executive Board
establishes policies, approves programs and oversees administrative and
financial plans. The Executive Board is made up of government
representatives who are elected by the United Nations Economic and Social
Council, usually for three-year terms.
UNICEF School in a box contains basic educational items for 1 teacher and
40 students

Following the reaching of term limits by Executive Director of

UNICEF Carol Bellamy, former United States Secretary of Agriculture Ann
Veneman became executive director of the organization in May 2005, with
an agenda to increase the organization's focus on the Millennium
Development Goals. She was succeeded in May 2010, by Anthony Lake.
UNICEF is an intergovernmental organization (IGO) and thus is
accountable to those governments. UNICEF’s salary and benefits package
is based on the United Nations Common System.

"ILO" redirects here. For other uses,.

International Labour Organization

 ILO logo

Abbreviation ILO

Formation 1919

Type UN agency

Legal status Active

Headquarters Geneva, Switzerland

Head Guy Ryder

Website www.ilo.org

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency

dealing with labour issues, particularly international labour standards and decent
work for all.[1] 185 of the 193 UN member states are members of the ILO.
In 1969, the organization received the Nobel Peace Prize for improving peace
among classes, pursuing justice for workers, and providing technical
assistance to other developing nations.
The ILO registers complaints against entities that are violating
international rules; however, it does not impose sanctions on governments.
Governance, organization, and membership

ILO headquarters in Geneva

Unlike other United Nations specialized agencies, the International Labour
Organization has a tripartite governing structure – representing
governments, employers, and workers (usually with a ratio of 2:1:1). The
rationale behind the tripartite structure is the creation of free and open
debate among governments and social partners.
The ILO secretariat (staff) is referred to as the International Labour Office.
Governing Body
The Governing Body decides the agenda of the International Labour
Conference, adopts the draft programme and budget of the organization
for submission to the conference, elects the director-general, requests
information from member states concerning labour matters, appoints
commissions of inquiry and supervises the work of the International
Labour Office.
Juan Somavía was the ILO's director-general since 1999 until October 2012,
when Guy Ryder was elected as his replacement.
This guiding body is composed of 28 government representatives, 14
workers' representatives, and 14 employers' representatives.
Ten of the government seats are held by member states that are nations of
"chief industrial importance," as first considered by an "impartial
committee." The nations are Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Italy,
Japan, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United
States. The terms of office are three years.
International Labour Conference
Interpreting booth ready for an ILO meeting
The ILO organizes the International Labour Conference in Geneva every year in
June, where conventions and recommendations are crafted and adopted.
Also known as the parliament of Labour, the conference also makes
decisions about the ILO's general policy, work programme and budget.
Each member state has four representatives at the conference: two
government delegates, an employer delegate and a worker delegate. All of
them have individual voting rights, and all votes are equal, regardless of
the population of the delegate's member state. The employer and worker
delegates are normally chosen in agreement with the "most representative"
national organizations of employers and workers. Usually, the workers'
delegates coordinate their voting, as do the employers' delegates.[citation
needed]. All delegates have the same rights, and are not required to vote in
blocs.
CONVENTIONS
Through July 2011, the ILO has adopted 189 conventions. If these
conventions are ratified by enough governments, they become in force.
However, ILO conventions are considered international regardless of
ratifications. When a convention comes into force, it creates a legal
obligation for ratifying nations to apply its provisions.
Every year the International Labour Conference's Committee on the
Application of Standards examines a number of alleged breaches
of international labour standards. Governments are required to submit reports
detailing their compliance with the obligations of the conventions they
have ratified. Conventions that have not been ratified by member states
have the same legal force as do recommendations.
In 1998, the 86th International Labour Conference adopted the Declaration on
Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. This declaration contains four
fundamental policies:

1. The right of workers to associate freely and bargain collectively;

2. The end of forced and compulsory labour;
 3. The end of child labour; and
4. The end of unfair discrimination among workers.
The ILO asserts that its members have an obligation to work towards fully
respecting these principles, embodied in relevant ILO Conventions. The
ILO Conventions which embody the fundamental principles have now
been ratified by most member states.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Recommendations do not have the binding force of conventions and are
not subject to ratification. Recommendations may be adopted at the same
time as conventions to supplement the latter with additional or more
detailed provisions. In other cases recommendations may be adopted
separately and may address issues separate from particular conventions

MEMBERSHIP
ILO member states
As of 2013, 185 of the 193 member states of the United Nations are members of the
ILO. The UN member states which are not members of the ILO
are Andorra, Bhutan, Liechtenstein, Micronesia, Monaco, Nauru, North Korea and Tonga.
The ILO constitution permits any member of the UN to become a member
of the ILO. To gain membership, a nation must inform the Director-General
that it accepts all the obligations of the ILO constitution.
Members of the ILO under the League of Nations automatically became
members when the organization's new constitution came into effect after
World War II. In addition, any original member of the United Nations and
any state admitted to the U.N. thereafter may join. Other states can be
admitted by a two-thirds vote of all delegates, including a two-thirds vote
of government delegates, at any ILO General Conference.
POSITION WITHIN THE UN
The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a specialized agency of
the United Nations (UN). As with other UN specialized agencies (or
programmes) working on international development, the ILO is also a
member of the United Nations Development Group.
ISSUES
FORCED LABOUR
The ILO has considered the fight against forced labour to be one of its main
priorities. During the interwar years, the issue was mainly considered a
colonial phenomenon, and the ILO's concern was to establish minimum
standards protecting the inhabitants of colonies from the worst abuses
committed by economic interests. After 1945, the goal became to set a
uniform and universal standard, determined by the higher awareness
gained during World War II of politically and economically motivated
systems of forced labour, but debates were hampered by the Cold War and
by exemptions claimed by colonial powers. Since the 1960s, declarations of
labour standards as a component of human rights have been weakened by
government of postcolonial countries claiming a need to exercise
extraordinary powers over labour in their role as emergency regimes
promoting rapid economic development.

Ratifications of the ILO's 1957 Abolition of Forced Labour Convention,

with non-ratifiers shown in red
In June 1998 the International Labour Conference adopted a Declaration on
Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work and its Follow-up that
obligates member States to respect, promote and realize freedom of
association and the right to collective bargaining, the elimination of all
forms of forced or compulsory labour, the effective abolition of child
labour, and the elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and
occupation.
With the adoption of the Declaration, the International Labour
Organization (ILO) created the InFocus Programme on Promoting the
Declaration which is responsible for the reporting processes and technical
cooperation activities associated with the Declaration; and it carries out
awareness raising, advocacy and knowledge functions.
In November 2001, following the publication of the in Focus Programme's
first Global Report on forced labour, the ILO Governing Body created
a Special Action Programme to Combat Forced Labour (SAP-FL), as part of broader
efforts to promote the 1998 Declaration on Fundamental Principles and
Rights at Work and its Follow-up.
Since its inception, SAP-FL has focused on raising global awareness of
forced labour in its different forms, and mobilising action against its
manifestation. Several thematic and country-specific studies and surveys
have since been undertaken, on such diverse aspects of forced labour
as bonded labour, human trafficking, forced domestic work, rural servitude, and
forced prison labour.
The Special Action Programme to combat Forced Labour (SAP-FL) has
spearheaded the ILO's work in this field since early 2002. The programme
is designed to:

 Raise global awareness and understanding of modern forced labour

 Assist governments in developing and implementing new laws, policies
and action plans
 Develop and disseminate guidance and training materials on key
aspects of forced labour and trafficking
 Implement innovative programmes that combine policy development,
capacity building of law enforcement and labour market institutions,
and targeted, field-based projects of direct support for both prevention
of forced labour and identification and rehabilitation of its victims.

Vulnerability of children leads to and is further created by the socio-

cultural, socio political and socio-religious situations they are in. A child
who is forced or born into a situation or discriminated group is at risk for
abuse, neglect and exploitation. The lack of a protection system either due
to mis-implementation of national laws and programmes or the absence of
protection policies and legislation also renders children vulnerable.
Following is a discussion of various protection issues concerning children.

Children in conflict with law are juveniles who have allegedly committed a
crime under the Indian Penal Code. The ICPS also recognizes a third
category of children; Child in contact with law. These children are victims
of or witnesses to crimes. ICPS lastly outlines that vulnerable children
groups also include but are not limited to the following: "children of
potentially vulnerable families and families at risk, children of socially
excluded groups like migrant families, families living in extreme poverty,
scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and other backward classes, families
subjected to or affected by discrimination, minorities, children infected
and/or affected by HIV/AIDS, orphans, child drug abusers, children of
substance abusers, child beggars, trafficked or sexually exploited children,
children of prisoners, and street and working children."
CHILDREN IN NEED OF CARE AND PROTECTION IS DEFINED AS A CHILD
WHO :

 Doesn't have a home or shelter and no means to obtain such an abode

 Resides with a person(s) who has threatened to harm them and is likely to
carry out that threat, harmed other children and hence is likely to kill,
abuse or neglect the child.

 Is mentally or physically handicapped, or has an illness, terminal or

incurable disease and has no one to provide and care for him/her.

 Has a parent or guardian deemed unfit or unable to take care of the child.

 Is an orphan, has no family to take care of him/her, or is a runaway or

missing child whose parents cannot be located after a reasonable search
period.

 Is being or is likely to be sexual, mentally, emotionally or physically

abused, tortured or exploited.

 Is being trafficked or abusing drug substances.

 Is being abused for unthinkable gains or illegal activities.

 Is a victim of arm conflict, civil unrest or a natural disaster

DAIGRAMS SHOW THE CHILD LABOR IN INDIA

How many children are there in India?

India with 1.21 billion people constitutes as the second most populous
country in the world, while children represents 39% of total population of
the country.

Age group of India’s Children *

The above figures show that the larger number of about 29 percent
constitutes Children in the age between 0-5 years. The share of Children (0-
6 years) in the total population has showed a decline of 2.8 points in 2011,
compared to Census 2001. The children's population (0-18) is 472 million.
Age group VS Gender of India’s Children *

While an absolute increase of 181 million in the country’s

population has been recorded during the decade 2001-2011, there is a
reduction of 5.05 millions in the population of children aged 0-6 years
during 2010-11. The decline in male children is 2.06 million and in female
children is 2.99 millions. The share of Children (0-6 years) in the total
population has showed a decline of 2.8 points in 2011, compared to Census
2001 and the decline was sharper for female children than male children in
the age group 0-6 years.
Gender of India’s Children *

The number of boys has dropped 2.42 per cent and that of girls 3.80 per
cent. Population (0-6 years) 2001-2011 registered minus (-) 3.08 percent
growth with minus (-) 2.42 for males and -3.80 for females. The proportion
of Child Population in the age group of 0-6 years to total population is 13.1
percent while the corresponding figure in 2001 was 15.9 percent. The
decline has been to the extent of 2.8 points.

Rural - Urban Distribution of Children Population *

State wise distribution of Children’s population *

Uttar Pradesh (19.27%) is the state with highest children’s population in the
country followed by Bihar (10.55 %), Maharashtra (8.15 %), West Bengal
(6.81 %) and Madhya Pradesh (6.46%) constitutes 52% of Children’s
population in the country.
State wise and Gender wise distribution of Children’s population *

Male – Female Children’s Ratio *

The Child gender Ratio in the country has declined.

Gender wise Adult V/S Children *

Gender wise distribution of Rural - Urban Children Population *

Age distribution of Rural & Urban population *
Comparison of Adult and Children population in Rural and Urban India

* Data Source: Census of India 2010-11

1
State wise details of working children in the age group of 5-14 years as
per Census
2001 and Census 2011 are as under:
working children in the age
group of 5-14 years
Census 2001 Census 2011
1. Andaman & Nicobar Island 1960 -999
2. Andhra Pradesh 1363339 -404851
3. Arunachal Pradesh 18482 -5766
4. Assam 351416 -99512
5. Bihar 1117500 -451590
6. Chandigarh U.T. 3779- 3135
7. Chhattisgarh 364572 - 63884
8. Dadra & Nagar H. 4274- 1054
9. Daman & Diu U.T. 729 -774
10. Delhi U.T. 41899- 26473
11. Goa 4138 -6920
12. Gujarat 485530- 250318
13. Haryana 253491- 53492
14. Himachal Pradesh 107774- 15001
15. Jammu & Kashmir 175630 -25528
16. Jharkhand 407200 -90996

17. Karnataka 822615 -249432

18. Kerala 26156 -21757
19. Lakshadweep UT 27- 28
20. Madhya Pradesh 1065259- 286310
21. Maharashtra 764075- 496916
22. Manipur 28836 -11805
23. Meghalaya 53940 - 18839
24. Mizoram 26265 -2793
25. Nagaland 45874 -11062
26. Odisha 377594 -92087
27. Pondicherry U.T. 1904 - 1421
28. Punjab 177268 - 90353

29. Rajasthan 1262570 - 252338

30. Sikkim 16457 - 2704
31. Tamil Nadu 418801 - 151437
32. Tripura 21756 - 4998
33. Uttar Pradesh 1927997 - 896301
34. Uttarakhand 70183 - 28098
35. West Bengal 857087 - 234275
Total in 2001- 12666377 In 2011 - 4353247
CONCLUSION
Child Protection
UNICEF considers child protection as the prevention of or responding to
the incidence of abuse, exploitation, violence and neglect of children. This
includes commercial sexual exploitation, trafficking, child labour and
harmful traditional practices, such as female genital mutilation/cutting
and child marriage. Protection also allows children to have access to their
other rights of survival, development, growth and participation. UNICEF
maintains that when child protection fails or is absent children have a
higher risk of death, poor physical and mental health, HIV/AIDS infection,
educational problems, displacement, homelessness, vagrancy and poor
parenting skills later in life.

According to the Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS) Child

Protection is about keeping children safe from a risk or perceived risk to
their lives or childhood. It is about recognizing that children are vulnerable
and hence reducing their vulnerability by protecting them from harm and
harmful situations. Child protection is about ensuring that children have a
security net to depend on, and if they happen to fall through the holes in
the system, the system has the responsibility to provide the child with the
necessary care and rehabilitation to bring them back into the safety net.

CHILD PROTECTION
Prevention Intervention Rehabilitation

 Law and Policies  Laws and Policies  Laws and Policies

 Processes and  Access and  Long term care
Protocols Assistance until age 18
 Mechanisms and Immediate Relief
  Skills and Training
Systems
(SOS attention)
 Monitoring
 Restoration of
 Sensitization and rights/Status Quo
Awareness Building
  Punish violators

Child Rights?

A right is as an agreement or contract established between the persons who

hold a right (often referred to as the "rights-holders") and the persons or
institutions which then have obligations and responsibilities in relation to
the realization of that right (often referred to as the
"duty-bearers".) Child rights are specialized human
rights that apply to all human beings below the age
of 18.

Universally child rights are defined by the United

Nations and United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child
(UNCRC). According to the UNCRC Child Rights are
minimum entitlements and freedoms that should be afforded to all persons
below the age of 18 regardless of race, colour, gender, language, religion,
opinions, origins, wealth, birth status or ability and therefore apply to all
people everywhere. The UN finds these rights interdependent and
indivisible, meaning that a right cannot be fulfilled at the expense of
another right.

The purpose of the UNCRC is to outline the basic human rights that should be
afforded to children. There are four broad classifications of these rights.
These four categories cover all civil, political, social, economic and cultural
rights of every child.

 Right to Survival: A child's right to survival begins before a child is

born. According to Government of India, a child life begins after
twenty weeks of conception. Hence the right to survival is inclusive
of the child rights to be born, right to minimum standards of food,
shelter and clothing, and the right to live with dignity.

 Right to Protection: A child has the right to be protected from neglect,

exploitation and abuse at home, and elsewhere.

 Right to Participation: A child has a right to participate in any

decision making that involves him/her directly or indirectly. There
 are varying degrees of participation as per the age and maturity of
the child.

 Right to Development: Children have the right to all forms of

development: Emotional, Mental and Physical. Emotional
development is fulfilled by proper care and love of a support system,
mental development through education and learning and physical
development through recreation, play and nutrition.

Instead of Lots of laws & Act Passed by the government , Actual

Implementation nothing, or we can say very low progress is there, They
Can’t Get the benefit of Education facility, or Other facility, So it should
be Improved.
REFERENCES

 Baland, Jean-Marie and James A. Robinson (2000) 'Is child labour

inefficient?

 Basu, Kaushik, and Homa Zarghamee (2009) 'Is product boycott a

good idea for controlling child labour? A theoretical investigation'

 Bhukuth, Augendra. "Defining child labour: a controversial debate"

 Emerson, Patrick M., and André Portela Souza. "Is Child Labour
Harmful

 WIKIPEDIA

 INTERNET

 Trishla Jasani (child Line 1098)