Senderos: Sembrando Derechos, Cosechando Mejores Futuros
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Senderos — works with government, the private sector, and civil society to improve adherence to international standards on child labor, forced labor, occupational safety and health, and other acceptable conditions of work in the sugarcane and tobacco sectors in Jalisco and Nayarit. The project is building government capacity to enforce labor laws in agricultural supply chains, improving private sector awareness and compliance with labor laws, and increasing farmworkers’ knowledge of labor rights and grievances mechanisms.
The Problem
Although children under the age of 18 are legally prohibited from working in agriculture, child labor is prevalent in Mexico’s agricultural sector, and children often perform dangerous agricultural tasks. Agricultural workers, many of whom are migrant workers, are regularly exposed to abuse such as discrimination, sexual harassment, labor exploitation, unsafe and precarious conditions of work, and physical violence. They often face labor rights violations such as salary withholding, restriction of movement, and occupational safety and health infractions. Existing labor law is inconsistently applied in these cases and infrequently protects farmworkers in Mexico.
Our Strategy
Since 2009, ILAB has supported efforts in Mexico to address child labor and improve acceptable conditions of work in agriculture. Senderos builds off this experience working in agricultural communities across different sectors. In the states of Jalisco and Nayarit, where sugarcane and tobacco are produced, Senderos provides stakeholders with tools to address labor violations in the agriculture sector.
To foster positive change for workers, the project engages different actors such as government agencies, employers, and workers to deploy tools to monitor and enforce laws related to child labor, occupational safety and health, and unacceptable conditions of work in the agricultural sector. One component of the project focuses particularly on the employers to increase their due diligence and facilitate access to grievance mechanisms for workers to remediate unacceptable conditions of work.
The project also raises farmworkers’ awareness of their rights under the law through worker-to-worker education, facilitation of health and safety committees, and worker self-advocacy groups.
Results
The following results reflect early activities during the project’s start-up phase, which are important for laying the foundation for future success. Please check back later for more results as the project advances further in its implementation.
- The project has completed data collection, which will inform the design of tools, trainings, and outreach strategies.
- Grantee:
- Verité
- Implementing Partners:
- Fundación Mexicana de Apoyo Infantil., A.C., (FAI), IMPAQ, World Vision
- Contact Information:
- GlobalKids@ILAB.dol.gov / Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking (OCFT)
- Tags:
- Child Labor
- Acceptable Conditions of Work
- Agriculture
- Child Labor
- Enforcement
- Forced Labor
- Labor Law
- Labor Rights
- Mexico
- Occupational Safety & Health
- Private Sector
- Remediation
- Sugar Cane
- Supply Chains
- Tobacco
