Attributed to – By Sudatta Khuntia, Programme Coordinator, ActionAid Association
Across the world, governments, development agencies and people realise that child labour hinders children’s development, causing lifelong harm and is a gross violation of a child’s fundamental human rights.
Despite this, child labour continues across the world today. The International Labour Organization (ILO) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) hold that there were 160 million children involved in child labour across the world in 2020, which is almost one in ten children. Addressing this global issue requires robust legal frameworks and effective enforcement mechanisms, which vary significantly across countries due to economic, cultural, and political factors.
In 2015, world leaders adopted the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which promote strategies for economic growth while addressing education, health, social protection, and job opportunities. Goal 8 aims to promote inclusive growth and decent work for all, with Target 8.7 focusing on eradicating child labour by 2025.
Despite efforts, progress has stagnated, with an increase in boys working, a slight decline in girls working, and more younger children involved in work.
Status of Child Labour in India
The 2011 census revealed that India has 10.1 million children engaged in child labour. We must also remember that there are varying definitions of child labour between global and Indian figures. The number in India refers to children aged 5 to 14 years, and the ILO-UNICEF numbers are based on workers between 5 to 17 years of age. In India, children primarily work in agriculture, textiles, garments, and carpet weaving. Children also work in small-scale mining, brick kilns, domestic work, and the informal economy, including street vending and small workshops, often under hazardous conditions, particularly in rural areas.
International and National Legal Frameworks
Internationally, the primary legal instruments addressing child labour are the International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions. The ILO’s Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138), sets the minimum age for employment at 16 years, with an exception for developing countries, which can place it at 14. The argument is that socio-economic conditions force developing countries like India to take a “sequential approach” with an initial focus on banning the labour of children between 14 and 18 years of age in ‘hazardous occupations and professions”. However, it should be stated that a few states of India, such as Delhi and Rajasthan, have declared 18 years the minimum age for all kinds of labour.
The “sequential approach” seeks to protect adolescents in labour from exploitation and harmful work conditions, ensure that adolescents who work as labourers are not employed in work that jeopardises their health, safety, development, and education, and eradicate the most severe forms of child labour, including slavery, trafficking, and hazardous tasks.
This year, 2024, marks the 25th anniversary of this convention, ratified by all ILO member states, underscoring global commitment to ending severe child exploitation. These conventions are legally binding for countries to ratify and establish international standards for child labour laws. The ILO has eight core conventions, and India has ratified six. In India, the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016, amending the Child Labour Act of 1986, serves as the primary legislation addressing child labour.
Obstacles to Effective Enforcement
Enforcing child labour laws faces significant challenges. The informal economy is a major issue, as much child labour occurs in sectors like agriculture, domestic work, and small-scale industries, often beyond legal oversight. In sub-Saharan Africa, children working in family-run agricultural activities illustrate this difficulty.
Poverty drives families to send children to work, undermining child labour laws, especially in regions with inadequate education systems. In South Asia, many children are out of school and working despite stringent laws.
Additionally, enforcement is hindered by a lack of coordination between departments, insufficient resources, and underfunded enforcement agencies lacking expertise. Solid legal frameworks often fail due to a lack of political will to strengthen enforcement systems.
Efforts Towards Transformation
Addressing child labour requires a multi-faceted approach. There is a need to address the distress faced by vulnerable households that force them to send their child to work as child labour. Education plays a pivotal role by providing alternatives to work and breaking the poverty cycle. Social protection measures, such as financial support for families, can alleviate economic pressures driving child labour.
Strengthening and activating child protection structures through better training, resource allocation, community involvement, and social audits is crucial.
It is only in this context that coming down heavy on employers of child labour will prove effective. Community involvement is crucial for grassroots participation. Hence, collaboration with community-based organisations, community leaders and grassroots-based civil society organisations is necessary. As tackling child labour is alsoa global duty in which we should participate, international cooperation with organisations like the ILO and UNICEF isalso essential.
In conclusion, despite significant progress in establishing legal frameworks, enforcement remains a major challenge. A combination of strengthened enforcement mechanisms, international cooperation, and countries’ socio-economic development is essential to eradicating child labour worldwide.
