List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor
The Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) maintains a list of goods and their source countries which it has reason to believe are produced by child labor or forced labor in violation of international standards, as required under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) of 2005 and subsequent reauthorizations. The List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor comprises 159 goods from 78 countries and areas, as of September 28, 2022.
ILAB maintains the List primarily to raise public awareness about forced labor and child labor around the world and to promote efforts to combat them; it is not intended to be punitive, but rather to serve as a catalyst for more strategic and focused coordination and collaboration among those working to address these problems.
Publication of the List has resulted in new opportunities for ILAB to engage with foreign governments to combat forced labor and child labor. It is also a valuable resource for researchers, advocacy organizations and companies wishing to carry out risk assessments and engage in due diligence on labor rights in their supply chains.
The countries on the List span every region of the world. The most common agricultural goods listed are sugarcane, cotton, coffee, tobacco, cattle, rice, and fish. In the manufacturing sector, bricks, garments, textiles, footwear, carpets, and fireworks appear most frequently. In mined or quarried goods, gold, coal and diamonds are most common.
ILAB published the initial TVPRA List in 2009 and updated it annually through 2014, following a set of procedural guidelines that were the product of an intensive public consultation process. ILAB now updates and publishes the List every other year, pursuant to changes in the law.
Procedural Guidelines
On January 25, 2024, ILAB's Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking published Procedural Guidelines for the development and maintenance of the List of Goods from countries produced by child labor or forced labor in violation of international standards.
Country/Area Sort descending | Good | Exploitation Type |
---|---|---|
Burma | There are reports that children are forced to work in the production of sugarcane in Burma. Forced child labor is found in the Thaton District, and particularly in areas near military camps. An NGO study documents villagers, including children, mobilized by the dozens each day from multiple villages to work during labor intensive times of the sugarcane production. The children are forced to cut trees and dig out the stumps to prepare the fields, plant the sugarcane, then mill and boil the sugarcane after it is harvested. They are not paid for their work. |
Child Labor, Forced Labor |
Burma | Child Labor, Forced Labor | |
Burma | Child Labor, Forced Labor | |
Burma | There are reports that children ages 15-17 work under conditions of forced labor in the production of beans in Burma. An NGO study documents children, as well as adults, forced by the military to work on rotation year round, planting and harvesting beans for the military camp. Local officials and the military enforce these work orders; the children cannot refuse to work, even if sick. |
Child Labor, Forced Labor |
Burma | Forced Labor | |
Burma | Forced Labor | |
Burma | Forced Labor | |
Burma | There are reports that children are forced by the military to work in the production of bricks in Burma. According to NGOs, forced child labor in brick production is pervasive, particularly in Northern Rakhine State and near military camps. In some cases, children are recruited into the military and forced to live in barracks and work for years in brick production; in other cases, children are sent by their families on rotation to fulfill the military's forced labor mandate for their household. The children are not paid for their work, and they face physical abuse and other punishments for refusing to work or for producing work that is considered of unacceptable quality. |
Child Labor, Forced Labor |
Burma | There are reports that children are forced to work in the production of teak in Burma. Forced child labor is found on teak plantations in the Thaton District, and particularly in areas near military camps. An NGO study reports that villagers, including children, from multiple villages are regularly mobilized by the military for forced labor to cultivate teak and other crops. The forced laborers are not paid for their work. |
Child Labor, Forced Labor |
Burma | There are reports that children as young as age nine are forced to work in the production of rice in Burma. According to NGOs, villagers, including children, are forced to work planting and harvesting rice for the military camps. These children are forced to work on rotation year-round for the military, although most rice paddy cultivation occurs during the rainy season. Local officials and the military enforce the work orders, and workers cannot refuse to work, even if sick. The forced child laborers are not paid for their work, and the children are beaten if their work is considered to be of unacceptable quality. |
Child Labor, Forced Labor |
your hand? Download ILAB's Sweat & Toil App today!
Are you a company looking to fight child labor and forced labor in supply
chains?