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Frequently Asked Questions (ICLP)

Q: What kind of child work is considered to be child labor? Aren't some kinds of work by children OK?
A:  Not all work performed by children is detrimental or exploitative. Some types of work experiences are very useful for children, as long as they do not harm their health or development or interfere with effective school attendance. Child labor does not usually refer to performing light work after school or legitimate apprenticeship programs. Nor does it refer to youths helping out in the family business, with household chores, or on the family farm. Rather, the child labor of concern is generally work that prevents effective school attendance or is performed under conditions hazardous to the physical and mental health or development of the child.
Q: Where does child labor exist?
A: Child labor exists throughout the world and in a variety of sectors. According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), there were an estimated 211 million children, ages 5 to 14,working around the world in 2000. The majority of the world's working children, according to the ILO, are found in Asia (127.3 million), followed by Africa (48.0 million), Latin America and the Caribbean (17.4 million), and the Middle East and North Africa (13.4 million). While Asia has the highest number of child workers, Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest proportion of working children.
Q: What are the "worst forms of child labor"?
A: This term is derived from ILO Convention No.182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labor. Convention No.182, unanimously adopted by ILO member states in 1999, identifies four categories of child labor that are considered to be "worst forms of child labor," and calls for their immediate elimination. They are: 1) all forms of slavery, such as trafficking of children, debt bondage, serfdom and forced or compulsory labor, including recruitment of children for use in armed conflict; 2) child prostitution and pornography; 3) use of children in illicit activities particularly production and trafficking of drugs; and 4) work which is likely to harm the health, safety and morals of children.
Q: What is the US Department of Labor's (USDOL) role in international child labor issues?
A: As the leading donor to the ILO's International Program on the Elimination of Child Labor (IPEC), USDOL has provided valuable resources toward child labor elimination efforts worldwide. Since FY 1995, USDOL has contributed over $112 million to ILO/IPEC.

USDOL support for IPEC helps to remove children from hazardous work, increase the participation of countries in IPEC, develop statistical surveys and baseline information on child labor, and increase worldwide awareness and public education about child labor. In the area of research and reporting, USDOL continues to contribute to the information base on international child labor issues, through its publication of a series of reports on the topic.
Q: What, in a few words, is the best strategy a government can have for eliminating child labor?
A: The best strategy is a multi-faceted one. First and foremost, eliminating child labor requires a strong political will to address the problem and commit resources to it. Next, it is vitally important to have a good understanding of the nature and extent of child labor. This is best accomplished through the collection of both qualitative and quantitative data using tested methodologies for gathering such information. Third is the enactment and enforcement of adequate child labor laws that are straightforward and do not contain major loopholes. Fourth is the provision of universal, affordable primary education. This means ensuring that every child, including those living in remote or marginalized communities, has the opportunity to attend school. Finally, where there are especially urgent situations, governments can play an important role in implementing or supporting targeted programs to eliminate child labor.
Q: What is a "Timebound Program"?
A: The Timebound Program is a comprehensive and integrated approach, developed by ILO/IPEC, toward the elimination of the worst forms of child labor within a specific timeframe. The approach links child labor elimination goals to national policies and programs on education, development and poverty alleviation. In FY 2001, with funding support from USDOL, IPEC launched the first three Timebound Programs in El Salvador, Nepal and Tanzania. To learn more about Timebound Programs, please visit the ILO/IPEC website at: http://www.ilo.org/public/english/standards/ipec/index.htm.
Q: How can I find out about grant opportunities relating to child labor?
A: ILAB provides grants for technical assistance and research purposes related to child labor elimination efforts and basic education initiatives for child laborers and children at risk of entering work. For more information on such grant opportunities, please visit the International Child Labor Program home page.
Q: What is the Education Initiative?
A: ILAB received $37 million in FY 2000 and FY 2001 to increase access to basic education for child laborers and children at risk of entering work. The Education Initiative, as the program is known, seeks to nurture the development, health, safety and enhanced future employability of children around the world by increasing access to basic education for children removed from or at risk of entering child labor. ILAB provides international technical assistance grants, through a competitive bid process, to implement the Education Initiative.
Q: What is the child labor Executive Order?
A: Issued in June 1999, Executive Order 13126 prohibits federal agencies from procuring goods made with forced or indentured child labor. The executive order required DOL, in consultation with the Departments of State and Treasury, to publish a list of products, by country of origin, which are believed to have been made with forced or indentured child labor. The list of products, along with the procedures for periodically updating the list, and the final rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) which implements the Executive Order, were published in the Federal Register on January 18, 2001. The FAR rule requires federal contractors who furnish products that appear on the list to certify they have made a good-faith effort to determine whether forced or indentured child labor was used to make the product. The list of products will be periodically updated as new information becomes available. Click here, to see the current list and other recent information on the Executive Order.
Q: Does the Department of Labor publish reports on international child labor issues?
A: Yes. Since 1994 the Department's International Child Labor Program has published six reports, exploring various aspects of international child labor. These reports were mandated by Congress and have been widely distributed in the United States and abroad.