Reports that nearly 55 million children under age 15 are working in violation of labor standards. Discusses industries in which child labor is common, effects on children's safety and health, and social and economic causes of exploitation. (SK)

A developmental psychologist describes her experience in testifying at Congressional hearings on proposed revisions in child labor legislation. The testimony argued that proposals to increase job opportunities for school-going teenagers are a threat to their development and to the job prospects of unemployed out-of-school youths and adults.…

Addressed to British companies doing business overseas, this briefing paper offers recommendations on practical steps to combat exploitative child labor while explaining why action without the provision of alternative incomes could drive children into higher risk areas of the informal economy. The paper explains that if sufficient resources are…

Explores, in a reprint of the 1989 Junior Division National History Day winning paper, the history of some technological developments in Pennsylvania's coal mining industry. Examines the "breaker boys," youths who sorted coal in severe working conditions. Introduces Ellen Webster Palmer, who addressed the problem by organizing the Boys'…

This paper explores ideological factors that influenced child labor reform and the image of the child as depicted in romantic and sentimental literature of 19th century England and the United States. In both countries the image of the child and the view of the relative roles of the parent and the state in bearing responsibility for children…

Recognizing the vulnerability of working children to possible exploitation and abuse, this report examines remunerated and unremunerated work performed by children worldwide, ranging from child labor in factories and agriculture to work conducted within the family household. Section 1 of the report describes the scale and importance of children's…

An estimated 250 million children are working worldwide, and child labor is one of the most devastating consequences of persistent poverty. This monograph proposes that the World Bank take stronger action, and outlines what to do and how, to help address the issue more pro-actively by partnering with other world organizations. The monograph first…

A 1990 U.S. Department of Labor strike force found child labor violations in more than 1,760 of 3,776 businesses investigated. Data from the American Youth Work Center, the National Consumers League, and the New York State Department of Labor also indicate increased numbers of child labor violations. Child labor has a long history in the United…