35-Plus Groups Fighting To Reduce Child Labor In the U.S. and abroad…

Washington, DC — Today, on World Children’s Day, Representative Raul Ruiz (CA-25) reintroduced the Children’s Act for Responsible Employment and Farm Safety (CARE Act) in the U.S. House of Representatives. The Child…

Please see this excellent primer on child labor in cocoa policy from Tu Rinsche, who has approached child labor policy from numerous perspectives—including federal agency, corporate, and NGO. Read it here on Substack or…

Students and teachers interested in the topic of child labor will be glad to know that there are many film resources available. Here are 11 films that can be especially useful for learning and discussion. The Harvest…

Children around the world are missing school to work. The issue is most critical in regions with poverty and limited access to education. https://www.iowapublicradio.org/news-from-npr/2025-06-26/how-many-kids-go-to-wo…

By Alyssa Bredefeld The U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing on Wednesday, June 6th, where Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer was questioned. The hearing focused on what Committee Chairman…

Federal cuts threaten Wisconsin farm safety center for children, rural communities National Farm Medicine Center is US leader on farm safety for kids, but loss of staff and funding puts programs in jeopardy By Hope…

February 4, 2025 Washington, DC – Today, the National Consumers League (NCL) voices its strong opposition to the newly introduced legislation, the Nullify Occupational Safety and Health Administration Act, which…

For Immediate Release: October 31, 2024 Contact: Reid Maki (202) 207-2820, reidm@nclnet.org   Washington, D.C. – The Child Labor Coalition (CLC) is proud to announce the 25 recipients of the 2024 Congressional…

News Release/June 5, 2024 [from USDOL] Wadi El Nil Association, Andrews Addoquaye Tagoe recognized for stellar efforts WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the recipients of the 2024…

USDOL News Release June 25, 2024 Investigation revealed children working dangerous jobs, unlawful hours CITY OF INDUSTRY, CA – The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a consent judgment in a federal court…

[Via The Washington Post, May 9, 2024] Citing work by The Washington Post, shareholders are asking the companies for a zero-tolerance policy at their franchises. "A group of powerful investment managers and public treasurers…

From the U.S. Department of Labor.... Train Management Train supervisors and managers on child labor requirements. Our fact sheets provide guidance on nonagricultural occupations and farm…

March 27, 2024 Media contact: National Consumers League/Child Labor Coalition – Reid Maki, reidm@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2820   Washington, DC – The Child Labor Coalition (CLC), representing 37 groups…

Press Release/March 21, 2024 Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) introduced the Children’s Act for Responsible Employment in Agriculture (CARE) Act to ensure child protections and…

[The following is a press release from Rep. McGarvey's office dated December 06, 2023] Congressman Morgan McGarvey Introduces Bill to Crack Down on Labor Rights Violations WASHINGTON, D.C. (December 06, 2023) – Today,…

Please listen to the October 2023 Chad and Cheese podcast here.  

U.S. Department of Labor's clickable map of the U.S. allowing users to compare their state's child labor hour restrictions with other states.   Click this link to view.      

CLC-member Shawn MacDonald, CEO of Verité, exams current U.S. child labor scandals against the context of global child labor.

Amazing, must-listen podcast….   “Why Are States Loosening Child Labor Laws?” --New York Times child labor reporter Hannah Dreier and the CLC’s Norma Flores López on Roy Woods Jr. video podcast, “Beyond…

By Mike Owen, Common Good Iowa Posted on February 9, 2023 at 12:01 PM by Mike Owen A new proposal in the Iowa Legislature turns Iowa priorities and values upside down. At a time we are doing too little for economic…

Margaret Wurth Senior Researcher, Children's Rights Division [This piece originally appeared on at www.hrw.org on June 13, 2022] As the world marks another World Day Against Child Labor, US leaders…

The Child Labor Coalition is reaching out for organizational endorsements of the Children’s Act for Responsible Employment and Farm Safety,  which would end exploitative child labor in U.S. agriculture. [The bill was…

By Katarzyna Rybarczyk  Most people use products containing mica daily, without realizing what the story behind their production is. Mica is a mineral commonly found in products such as cosmetics, paints, and electronics.…

Tips for parents, employers, and teens: While work plays an important role in the development of teenagers, teens and parents should carefully think about prospective jobs that teens are considering and assess possible workplace…

Chocolate Companies Must Do More to Reduce Widespread Child Labor Confirmed by New Report on the West African Cocoa Sector; Due Diligence Legislation is Needed to Fix Supply Chains   For immediate release: October…

By Ellie Murphy, CLC Intern Combatting child labor during a global pandemic is a staggering challenge. In countries like Ghana, the Ivory Coast, Bangladesh—and dozens more struggling with child labor problems—school…

By Margaret Wurth Senior Researcher, Children's Rights Division, Human Rights Watch (HRW) New research published in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine reinforces just how dangerous agricultural…

The Child Labor Coalition is a non-partisan group that is concerned with the health and welfare of children in the U.S. and abroad. We were extremely critical of the Obama administration's decision to withdraw proposed safety…

“Which companies are good? Which companies can I safely buy from without risk that their products are made by child labor or forced labor?” These are questions you get asked all the time when you work for a consumer…

    Consumers love cotton. It’s soft, comfortable and natural. But cotton has a dark side: child labor and forced labor is often used to produce it. Eighteen countries use child labor to produce cotton and…

There were an estimated 27.6 million victims of human.

The countries identified by the US government in 2018 as using child soldiers: Burma, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iran, Iraq, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria and Yemen.  

In 2015 and 2016 we averaged 27 teen work deaths a year compared to 72.5 deaths in 1999 and 2000. Data from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries by year: 2016 = 30   (report) 2015 = 24   (report) 2014…

Press Release February 8, 2018 Contact: Reid Maki, Child Labor Coalition, (202) 207-2820, reidm@nclnet.org  Washington, DC--The Child Labor Coalition (CLC) today joins nearly 30 NGOs and trade unions…

By Deborah Andrews, Contributing Writer Legal protections for children working in hazardous conditions in Nicaragua are robust on paper, but systematic publicity, implementation and enforcement of the law is missing. Nicaragua…

There’s no doubt that humans love chocolate. Globally, we consume $80 to $100 billion worth of it a year. Despite its popularity and the joy it gives us, there is a dark side to chocolate: cocoa, its main ingredient, is…

[Adopted in 2016 and published in 2017]   Articles 4(1), 5 and 7(1) of the Convention. Determination of types of hazardous work, monitoring mechanisms and penalties. Hazardous work in agriculture from 16 years of age. The…

October 18, 2016   The President The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20500   Dear Mr. President: As you approach the final months of your term in office, we would first like to commend…

For immediate release: August 3, 2016 Contact: Reid Maki, Child Labor Coalition, (202) 207-2820, reidm@nclnet.org Washington, DC—A letter signed by 110 groups, representing tens of millions of Americans, is urging President…

The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2016 is a missed opportunity. I was hoping that today the elected leaders of our country will acknowledge that the value of freedom and childhood is greater…

[This piece by CLC member Sonia Mistry of the  Solidarity Center was first published on June 10th, 2016 in Thomas Reuters Foundation News.] He was completely covered in orange dust, from his hair to his toes. Maybe 7…

 One hundred years ago, 100 workers died each day in America. Today, that number—with a U.S. population 3.5 times greater—is 13. While the loss of many manufacturing and farm jobs explains some of this drop, it doesn’t…

The most common way for a teen worker to die is in a traffic accident. In 2010, 32,708 Americans—about 90 a day—died in car accidents. Fifteen of the 34 youth workers under 18 who died in 2010—44 percent—perished…

In terms of raw numbers, retail establishments, restaurants, and grocery stores are three of the largest employers of teen workers.  According to 2009 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 44 percent…

Transportation accidents, broadly defined to include almost any moving vehicle, killed 19 of the 22 teens under 18 in the latest BLS Fatal Occupational Injuries report covering 2014. All eight of the youth workers who died…

Landscaping and yard work is a frequent entry point into the job market for teenagers. However, the sharp implements and machinery used to do the work present dangers for teens. Often, young workers are left unsupervised…

[Section 1 of the "Five Most Dangerous Jobs for Teens" Report 2016] Nearly 5,000 workers die on the job each year—each day, an average of 13 workers are killed on the job—some of those workers are teenagers. Each of…

May 3, 2016 [This letter in support of ILAB funding was recently sent to appropriators Senator Roy Blunt and Senator Patty Murray, and Representatives Tom Cole and Rosa DeLauro on behalf of 46 organizations, representing…

By Mary Donovan, CLC Contributing Writer From mobile phones to big data analytics, technology can help in the fight against human trafficking. Access to a phone can enable a victim to call friends, family, or a hotline for…

85 million children are currently in dangerous, dirty, and degrading jobs; $53 million saved in budget deal to ensure children are protected from exploitative labor FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 17, 2015 MEDIA CONTACT: Reid Maki, Child Labor Coalition, (202) 207-2820, reidm@nclnet.org Washington, DC—The Congressional budget package released today continues funding for programs to end child labor after the House and Senate voted to cut funding to the Department of Labor’s impactful and critical program in June 2015. The International Labor Affairs Bureau (ILAB) directs the U.S. Government’s efforts to end forced labor and child labor around the world. Advocates for protecting children from child labor are thankful for Congressional leadership.

Despite great progress in reducing child labor, Congress is very close to cutting all of the Department of Labor’s funding for child labor grant programs. Both the House and Senate have proposed cuts in their budgets and…

Child Labor Coalition Statement in Support of the Restoration of Funding for US Department of Labor’s ILAB Child-Labor Programs   The Child Labor Coalition, whose members include the following 35 groups, representing…

  Jestoni* quit school at age 14 in order to take part in small-scale mining as a means to help support his family. They had abandoned farming for mining because of frequent flooding in their region of the Philippines.…

Tips for Teen Workers, Parents, and Employers to Help Working Teens Stay Safe in the Work Place  The National Consumers League’s Guide, Updated Annually   Report author: Reid Maki, Director of Child Labor…

Do you ever think about people from the past you wish you could go back in time to meet? At the top or near the top of my list is César Chávez, who was born on March 31st in 1927. César died in 1993 a few months before…

Child labor among girls fell by 40% between 2000 and 2012, compared to 25% for boys.   Source: ILO

[This article originally appeared in The Christian Science Monitor on October 21, 2014] By Nina Smith, GoodWeave International  My long-time friend, colleague, and mentor has just been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Kailash…

Washington, DC – The Child Labor Coalition (CLC), a group of 34 organizations dedicated to fighting exploitative child labor, is celebrating the awarding of this year’s Nobel Peace Prize to Kailash Satyarthi and Malala…

Dear Mr. President, We write to you as organizations representing millions of Americans, including teachers, healthcare professionals, workers, farmworkers, and advocates concerned about the safety, education, and welfare…

Letter to Secretary of State John Kerry regarding Thailand's downgrade in the 2014 TIP Report Publication Date: June 20, 2014 Dear Secretary Kerry: We write today to applaud the U.S. State Department’s decision to downgrade…

By Julie Duffy, Child Labor Coalition Intern No one expected 18 year-old Christina LoBrutto's first overnight shift at the Pathmark grocery store in Old Bridge, New Jersey to be her last. Sadly, however, the recent high…

When children are exploited for the economic gains of others, everybody loses--the children lose, their families lose, their country loses, the world loses. When even one child is exploited, every one of us is diminished.

For immediate release: February 28, 2013 Contact: Reid Maki, (202) 207-2820, reidm@nclnet.org On February 23, Saudi Arabia became the 167th country to ratify ILO Convention 138, setting the minimum age at which children…

  As the children’s rights advocate for Human Rights Watch, one of the questions I’m asked most frequently is why the US has not ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Currently, only two other countries…

Dr. Johnson (far right) pictured here with CLC members Jackie Starr, Norma Flores Lopez, Judy Gearhart, and Reid Maki (left to right) Child labor advocates from around the world were allowed to give four-minute plenary speeches…

 By Sharon L. Fawcett, CLC Contributing Writer “I clean the floor many times in a day. When it is not well done, my employer throws the dirty water at my face.” This is how girl from Togo describes her experience with…

For Immediate Release Tanzania: Hazardous Life of Child Gold Miners Government, World Bank, Donors Should Address Child Labor in Mines   (Dar Es Salaam, August 28, 2013) – Children as young as eight-years-old…

[Please click on the title above to view the infographic.]     This is the first in a series of  child-labor-related infographics in which we examine legal protections for children. It is important to note…

International travel allows you to experience different cultures, but vacations that are meant to be carefree and fun pose some threats as well. Among these threats is the risk of becoming a victim of human trafficking. An…

Grecia Balli began working in farm fields when she was 10 years old. At age 14, she decided to drop out of school because her life as a migrant farmworker caused her to switch schools frequently, making it difficult for…

For immediate release: June 25, 2013 Contact: Reid Maki, (202) 207-2820, reidm@nclnet.org On June 19 the US placed Uzbekistan in the lowest rank in the Global Trafficking in Persons Report for failing to end forced labor,…

Press release: June 11, 2013 The International Labour Organization supervisory body recommends that the Uzbek government to take urgent and serious action to end forced labour of children and adults in the cotton sector. (Geneva)…

News Release ILAB News Release: [05/20/2013] Contact Name: Gloria Della or Egan Reich Phone Number: (202) 693-4679 or x4960 Email: Della.Gloria.D@dol.gov or Reich.Egan.2@dol.gov Release Number: 13-0972-NAT $9 million in…

Of Ships and Men   There are ships like hotels horizontal and there are children and children   breaking, dragging these dead vessels through beach sand soiled with oil   through the…

Apple Inc. announced today that its internal audits had found more than 106 underage employees at 11 different locations in its supply chain; it found another 70 “historical” cases of child labor. The company also said…

With the holidays upon us, many American look forward to trimming their Christmas tree and spending time with their loved ones, especially their children. For many kids, Christmas invokes the happiest of memories, but not…

NATIONAL CONSUMERS LEAGUE PRESS STATEMENT For immediate release: October 30, 2012 Contact: Reid Maki, (703) 801-3338, reidm@nclnet.org The Oct. 28th New York Times story “Silos Loom As Death Traps on Farms” stands…

An estimated 1 million children perform hazardous work in mines around the world.

  October 9, 2012 [Human Rights Watch interviewed 10 children, some as young as 11, working in tanneries. Many children work 12 or even 14 hours a day, considerably more than the five-hour limit for adolescents in…

According to a Tulane University study, 40 per cent of the 820,000 children working in cocoa in Ivory Coast are not enrolled in school, and only about 5 per cent of the Ivorian children are paid for their work.

In the Philippines, an estimated 246,000 children experience abuse, violence and child labor living on the streets.

SEOUL | Tue Sep 4, 2012 4:28am IST (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co said on Monday it would inspect 250 Chinese companies which make products for the South Korean firm to ensure no labor laws are broken after a U.S.-based…

For Immediate Release [Human Rights Watch Press Release, 8/6/12] (Manila, August 6, 2012) – The Philippines’ ratification of the Domestic Workers Convention will bring the groundbreaking international treaty into legal…

By Dermot Doherty and Stanley James - Jun 29, 2012 9:51 AM ET [from Bloomberg] Nestle SA (NESN) needs to step up measures to combat child labor in the Ivory Coast cocoa industry, according to a study requested by the…

In June 2012, the ILO estimated that 21 million people had experienced forced labor over a 10-year period--5.5 million had been children.

While work plays an important role in the development of teenagers, teens and parents should carefully think about prospective jobs that teens are considering and assess possible workplace dangers that those jobs might possess. TIPS…

[The following is a segment from NCL's Five Most Dangerous Jobs for Teens 2012 Report] The competitive teen job market means that some teens might be tempted to take jobs that are less safe than others out of desperation…

Bindu Shajan Perappadan [from The Hindu, 2012] Gross violation: NCPCR members found child labourers in large numbers in Bt cotton fields in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Rajasthan. The latest NCPCR survey report…

According to Bureau of Labor Statistics fatality records, construction and roofing are two of the ten most dangerous jobs in America. In 2007, an estimated 372,000 workers of all ages were injured in construction accidents…