Introduction  

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In December 1999, the United States ratified the International Labor Organization’s Convention 182 Concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labor.  As a ratifying state, the United States is required to develop a Program of Action, detailing the nation’s strategy for eliminating and preventing the worst forms of child labor in the United States.    In order for the United States to be in full compliance with ILO Convention 182, leading NGO experts on child labor herein attest that the U.S. National Program of Action must include changes to federal law and practice.

The Child Labor Coalition (CLC) convened a meeting of leading child labor experts from 17 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to discuss ILO Convention 182 and the National Program of Action.  This report reflects the discussions and decisions reached at the October 16, 2000, gathering of NGOs.  The meeting included representatives of both members and non-members of the CLC (Attachment 1).   This report provides to the National Economic Council and relevant U.S. Government agencies a comprehensive listing of necessary changes in U.S. law and practice in order for the United States to be in full compliance with ILO Convention 182. 

The Child Labor Coalition, formed in 1989, is a national network for the exchange of information about child labor.  The CLC provides a forum and unified voice on protecting working minors and ending exploitation of children in the workplace.  It educates the public to combat child labor abuses and promotes initiatives and legislation.  The Child Labor Coalition has more than 50 member organizations and agencies (Attachment 2).   

History and Background on Convention 182  

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Below is a chronology of recent developments regarding U.S. and international commitment to addressing the worst forms of child labor: 

•   Convention 182 was adopted by the Conference of the International Labor Organization at its 87th Session in Geneva on June 17, 1999.  It was unanimously adopted by the 174 ILO member states. 

•   The United States Senate ratified the Convention on November 5, 1999. 

•  President Clinton signed the Convention on December 2, 1999.

•  ILO Convention 182 entered into force in the United States on December 2, 2000.

Convention 182 succeeded under the leadership of the Director General of the International Labor Organization, Juan Somavia, and the steadfast commitment of the President of the United States, William J. Clinton, and his Administration.   President Clinton urged ILO member states to ratify and comply with the treaty at a historic first address by a U.S. President to the ILO.  President Clinton and his Administration led the effort on U.S. ratification of Convention 182 within the U.S. Congress.

The Child Labor Coalition applauds the bipartisan support afforded this Convention and commends the 106th Congress on its ratification of Convention 182. The creation and the speed of adoption of Convention 182—together with the fastest ratification of any treaty in U.S. history—speaks to the unanimous and worldwide condemnation of the worst forms of child labor.

Rationale for a Strong National Program of Action for Convention 182  

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The U.S. Program of Action must be swiftly and aggressively implemented in order for our country to retain its credibility with other ILO member states. The U.S. has taken a strong leadership role to end child labor worldwide through its support of the Convention’s passage and by providing substantial funding through the Department of Labor’s Bureau of International Affairs to the ILO’s International Programs for the Elimination of Child Labor (IPEC).

Consistent with the strong condemnation of the worst forms of child labor worldwide, we believe that the U.S. must develop and implement a clearly articulated National Program of Action to end the worst forms of child labor within our borders. Article 6 of ILO Convention 182 states:

1. Each member shall design and implement programs of action to eliminate as a priority the worst forms of child labor.
   

2. Such programs of action shall be designed and implemented in consultation with relevant government institutions and employer’s and workers’ organizations, taking into consideration the views of other concerned groups as appropriate.

Such a policy must incorporate guidelines and a philosophy to guide the role and functions of U.S. Government agencies such as the Departments of Labor, Treasury, and Commerce; the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; and the numerous entities—such as international lending institutions—regulated and monitored by these departments and agencies. The policies and practices of these entities affect the lives of millions of children experiencing the worst forms of child labor both in the U.S. and beyond our borders.

The U.S. has an opportunity to demonstrate legal, humanitarian, and moral leadership by creating and implementing a National Program of Action and associated policies to urgently address the worst forms of child labor within our borders.

U.S. Government Position on Convention 182 and U.S. Law  

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The Tripartite Advisory Panel on International Labor Standards (TAPILS), a sub-group of the President’s Committee on the ILO, consisting of legal advisors from the Departments of Labor, State, and Commerce; the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO); and the United States Council for International Business, examined ILO Convention 182.  Their finding was “after a thorough legal review, it has been determined that ratification of Convention 182 would not in any way require a change in current United States law and practice.” 

This report was transmitted to the U.S. Senate as they were deliberating ratifying ILO Convention 182 and influenced the U.S. Senate in their decision to ratify.

NGO Position on ILO Convention 182 and U.S. Law

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The NGO Working Group concurs that U.S. law prohibits many of the activities defined as the worst forms of child labor, undertakes enforcement of the laws, and actively prosecutes the adults who procure youth for these activities.  However, there remain children in the U.S. who are legally involved in work that harms their health, safety, or morals.  Long-standing federal exemptions to existing child labor law and outdated and insufficient protections from exposure to hazardous work environments are two glaring examples.  These deficiencies are further explored under Identification of Scope of Problem in the U.S. under Article 3; see (d).

It is our position that unless significant changes are made to U.S. law and practice, as detailed in Section II of this report, the United States will not be in full compliance with ILO Convention 182.

Section I – Proposed U.S. National Policy

on the Worst Forms of Child Labor  

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The NGO Working Group recognizes that the United States finds all forms of child labor as defined in ILO Convention 182 as immoral and unacceptable in a civil society where fundamental rights and principles at work are valued and freedom from exploitation is a right of all children and youth within our borders.  As a ratifying country to ILO Convention 182, the U.S. Government’s first task is to develop a National Policy on the Worst Forms of Child Labor.  The NGO Working Group’s recommendations for the National Policy are outlined below. 

With all due speed and diligence, the U.S. Government and its agencies and programs utilizing U.S. Government funds shall:

• Identify, review, and scrutinize their laws, practices, and enforcement of laws and regulations that affect the lives of children working in the U.S. under conditions as defined in Convention 182, Article 3 (a), (b), (c), and (d).  Special attention should be given to existing exemptions from child labor laws contained in the Fair Labor Standards Act.
  

• Develop a task force comprised of the government entities that have programs and policies affecting these children and youth (Attachment 4) to coordinate national programs and approaches to effectively prevent and eliminate the worst forms of child labor in the United States.
  

• Establish a data collection process and administrative entity to conduct a bi-annual review on the number of children involved in the worst forms of child labor; identify new and evolving evidences of worst forms of child labor; investigate and review new information which may add or remove specific child labor activities from inclusion under Article 3 (d); collect and review new information and studies on health risks to young workers; and evaluate the effectiveness of existing government programs and initiatives to prevent and eliminate the worst forms of child labor.
  

• Develop and implement, with U.S. ILO Tripartite representatives, a comprehensive National Program of Action, taking into consideration the views of NGOs and youth who labor under the worst forms of child labor.   This plan should include steps to improve the effectiveness and ensure enforcement of existing legislation related to the protection of children from the worst forms of child labor.  It should also include a plan of action to address areas in which children are not adequately protected under existing legislation, regulation, and enforcement.
  

• Improve accessibility to education and develop programs to promote the reintegration of children into education for populations at risk for the worst forms of child labor.
  

• Seek to incorporate in its funding of international programs on child labor and its foreign aid programs a requirement to comply with the Government Performance and Results Act. The U.S. shall attempt to analyze and ensure that future legislative, regulatory, administrative, and programmatic policies that affect child laborers and their families, shall identify, anticipate, and plan for the possible negative and unintended outcomes resulting from changes in policies, practices of programming, and policy initiatives funded by the U.S. Government.
  

• Develop and launch a national public awareness campaign on the worst forms of child labor and its consequences for society, with special emphasis on children working in agriculture.  Emphasize in our public education efforts that children should be protected from harmful work.  The campaign should include a mechanism for national evaluation to determine whether the United States is making progress on eliminating the worst forms of child labor and whether these efforts are sustainable for the future.

Section II – ILO Convention 182: U. S. National Program of Action  

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The following text presents the NGO Working Group’s review of current U.S. law and practice regarding the worst forms of child labor.  Although the United States has a considerable array of protective measures to safeguard youth, the NGO Working Group attests that there are significant areas where children are inadequately protected. 

The purpose of this report is to identify necessary changes to U.S. law and practice in order for the United States to be in full compliance with ILO Convention 182.  The NGO Working Group’s focus is on identifying the major areas in U.S. law and practice that are inadequate in safeguarding the health, safety, or morals of children.    In the course of our report, we additionally highlight where the worst forms of child labor occur, despite prevailing U.S. law and enforcement.  Worst Forms of Child Labor Data: USA is a report from the International Secretariat of the Global March Against Child Labor (Attachment 3).  Although some of the statistics are children mixed with adults, the report nevertheless provides significant and repeated examples that underscore the serious nature of the worst forms of child labor in the United States.

Also included in this report are other desired outcomes in U.S. legislation, regulation, enforcement, and research.  Not addressed in this report is a review of U.S. laws and practices that may affect the worst forms of child labor worldwide. 

Identification of Scope of Problem in the U.S. under Article 3:

For the purposes of this Convention, the term the worst forms of child labor comprises:

(a)  all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labor, including forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict;

The NGO Working Group has identified areas of activities within the United States that fall under Article 3 (a).  Instances of slavery and practices similar to slavery, including trafficking of children, may and do occur in defiance of U.S. law in:  sweatshop labor (especially garment industry); commercial sex trade; and domestic service (including student exchange programs and nannies).

Anecdotal information indicates that instances of slavery and practices similar to slavery (including trafficking of children and forced labor) may exist in areas identified below and suggest that a full investigation by the USDOL (or other appropriate U.S. agency) be undertaken to ascertain the scope and depth of that information so that the U.S. signatory status on ILO Convention 182 can affirmatively represent the accurate domestic status of slavery and forced labor.  These activities are the following:

•  trafficking of children within the United States (between states); and

•  youth peddling (traveling sales crews of youth selling consumer items such as candy and magazine subscriptions door to door and on street corners).

•  entertainment industry (i.e., children working for money that goes to others)

•  agricultural industry (i.e., children working as migrant and seasonal farmworkers with or without their families -- including older minors who are not living with families and are working independently under the Guestworker Program).

Substantiating Research:

•  A soon to be released report on Commercial Sexual Exploitation, by Dr. Richard Estes, University Of Pennsylvania (a report for the U.S. Department of Justice). 

•   A soon to be released report on transnational trafficking of agricultural workers by Ed Keesan for the U.S. Department of Labor. 

•   Trafficking in Women and Children, Congressional Research Service, Number 98-649-C, May 2000.

•   International Trafficking in Women to the United States: A Contemporary Manifestation of Slavery and Organized Crime, by Amy O’Neill Richard, DCI Exceptional Intelligence Analyst Program (An Intelligence Monograph), November 1999.

•   “Children as Chattels: The Disturbing Plight of Child Performers,” by Marc R. Staenberg, Esq. And Daniel K. Stuart, Esq., Beverly Hills Entertainment Lawyers Association Journal, April 1999.

(b) the use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, for the production of pornography or for pornographic performances;

The NGO Working Group has identified areas of activities within the United States that fall under Article 3 (b).  The use, procuring or offering of a child for sex work or pornography may and do occur in defiance of  U.S. law in: the Internet; child prostitution (with particular focus on military bases, tourist areas, resort areas, and truck stops); and recruitment of street and homeless youth for pornography and prostitution.

Particular attention must be given to the proliferation, expansion, and increasing adaptability of the Internet as a vehicle for child pornography.  The UNESCO Report, January 1999, predicted that child sexual abuse and child pornography would become a major issue under ILO Convention 182.  The NGO Working Group agrees.  The premier challenge for the United States under ILO Convention 182 is to address, prevent, and eliminate the rampant and growing sexual exploitation of children on the Internet – such as the organizing of national and international pedophile networks, the production and exchange of pornography, and the trafficking of children for sexual encounters. 

U.S. federal law on child pornography is compliant with ILO Convention 182.  The possession, receipt, distribution, and production of child pornography are all illegal in the United States.  Three federal law enforcement agencies, the FBI, U.S. Customs Service, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, as well as a myriad of local and state agencies, are working to uncover child pornography crimes.  The number of prosecutions in recent years is in the hundreds, but it only scratches the surface of the problem.

Terry Lord, Chief, Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Criminal Division, United States Department of Justice, shared at the Child Labor Coalition’s June 2000 conference:  “The exploitation of minors is continuous and the number of images found on the Internet increases as we speak.  The proliferation of users, numbers of images, and the children involved has become a big business.”

These examples show the scope of the problem:

•  Collectors of child pornography have developed Web sites where they are able to post a request for whatever type of child pornography they want.  The Web sites then serve as a broker sending the request to its customers to fill the request.  On one particular Web site that U.S. Justice uncovered, there were more than 35,000 individuals participating. 

•  Trading and collecting child pornography is not confined to the United States or Western countries.  In Operation Cheshire Cat, the Department of Justice worked with law enforcement in 14 other countries to stop an international ring trading in child pornography.  In order to participate in this ring, an individual had to have a collection of at least 10,000 images and be able to trade images with others.  This raised the stakes for the collector to get more and more child pornography.  The ring involved activities in many countries around the world with a number of offenders in the United States.

 According to the Justice Department, molesters and exploiters also use the chat rooms on the Internet to trade stories about molestation and information about where to find vulnerable victims and how to entice them to submit to the production of child pornography or to molestation.  And now, through the use of the most developed equipment, the interactive computer systems, a computer user may participate remotely in the online molestation of a minor.  The molester on the scene uses a video machine or digital camera to record his sexual exploitation of a minor and transmit the acts through his computer.  At the same time other offenders may be viewing the molestation live on their own computers.  They may, by voice or electronic messaging, then provide suggested acts for the minor to perform and thereby take part in the actual exploitation simultaneously.

Although our federal laws on child pornography are in full compliance with ILO Convention 182, the NGO Working Group urges the U.S. Government to commit greater resources for investigation and prosecution of child pornography on the Internet.  We urge the U.S. Government to set a high standard – incurring severe penalties for purveyors as well as holders of child pornography.  We urge the U.S. Government to take a leadership role internationally in eliminating child sexual exploitation from the Internet – promoting stiff penalties and strong enforcement in all countries.

The fine line between child pornography and the mainstream entertainment industry must also be addressed.  As the United States is the premier source for movies and television shows, we have a responsibility to take a leadership role in assuring that children are not sexually exploited within the entertainment industry.  Although the solicitation of a minor for sexual acts (even simulated) is specifically prohibited in every state, the line is often crossed in the name of mainstream entertainment.  The remake of “Lolita” produced by a major motion picture company and broadcast on cable television engaged a fourteen year old minor to “simulate” a sexual act with an adult actor in his mid-50s.  Fourteen year old Brad Renfro was filmed simulating oral sex with an adult actress in “Telling Lies in America.”  The distinction between “real” and “reel” for children in the entertainment business is often not much.

Anecdotal information indicates that the use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, pornography, or pornographic performance may exist in areas identified below and suggest that a full investigation by the USDOL (or other appropriate U.S. agency) be undertaken to ascertain the scope and depth of that information so that the U.S. signatory status on ILO Convention 182 can affirmatively represent the accurate domestic status of slavery and forced labor.  These activities are the following:

•  youth peddling (traveling sales crews of youth selling consumer items such as candy and magazine subscriptions door to door and on street corners).

•  agricultural work (particularly unattended children working in U.S. after parents are sent home by the INS).

Substantiating Research:

•  A soon to be released report on Commercial Sexual Exploitation, by Dr. Richard Estes, University Of Pennsylvania (a report for the U.S. Department of Justice). 

•   International Trafficking in Women to the United States: A Contemporary Manifestation of Slavery and Organized Crime, by Amy O’Neill Richard, November 1999, DCI Exceptional Intelligence Analyst Program (An Intelligence Monograph)

(c) the use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the production and trafficking of drugs as defined in the relevant international treaties;

The NGO Working Group has identified areas of activities within the United States that fall under Article 3 (c).  The use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities may and do occur in defiance of  U.S. law in the trafficking of drugs and weapons.

(d) work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children.

ILO Convention 182, Article 4 states: The types of work referred to under Article 3(d) shall be determined by national laws or regulations or by the competent authority, after consultation with the organizations of employers and workers concerned, taking into consideration relevant international standards, in particular Paragraphs 3 and 4 of the Worst Forms of Child Labor Recommendation, 1999.  The competent authority, after consultation with the organizations of employers and workers concerned, shall identify where the types of work so determined exist.   The list of the types of work determined shall be periodically examined and revised as necessary, in consultation with the organizations of employers and workers concerned.

The NGO  Working Group strongly recommends that the U.S. Government adopt the criteria outlined in ILO Recommendation 190.  Although it is not legally binding, ILO Recommendation 190 adds specificity to the concept of “work that is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children” and is the criteria we have used for our comments in this section.

The NGO Working Group recognizes that Article 3 (d) is by nature more vague and perhaps less quantifiable than Article 3 (a), (b), and (c).   However, we believe that the activities identified under 3 (d) are directly and tangentially related to (a), (b), and (c). and are sufficiently intertwined to suggest that national policy needs to address these issues as well.

The NGO Working Group has identified activities within the United States that fall under Article 3 (d).  The NGO Working Group finds that the health, safety, or morals of children are compromised in the following areas and the affected children are inadequately protected by U.S. legislation, regulation, and enforcement. 

•  hired agricultural work

• children legally working as migrant and seasonal farmworkers at ages as young as 10 years old, which is far younger than in any other industry; and
  

• residential agricultural workers (i.e., local children hired to work in commercial agriculture.

•  entertainment industry (especially the use of premature babies)

•  construction industry (children legally working at age 16)

•  crafts industry (shell crafts, beadwork, and other products which are represented as crafts)

•  military recruitment and combat activities among 17 year olds

•  failure of child labor laws to protect children in all industries up to the age of 18.

•  exposure to pesticides and other hazardous chemicals (in agriculture and non-agriculture)

•  outdated and inadequate Hazardous Occupation Orders under Federal law (i.e., working at heights, working with hazardous machinery, contact with body fluids and hazardous waste, exposure to chemicals, etc.)

The NGO Working Group concludes that the National Program of Action must include changes to U.S. law and practice in order for the United States to be in full compliance with ILO Convention 182. 

Substantiating Research:

•   Soon to be released report on the Hazardous Occupation Orders, by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health for the U.S. Department of Labor, expected publication February 2001.

•   The Ones the Law Forgot: Children Working in Agriculture, by Shelley Davis and James B. Leonard, Farmworker Justice Fund, July 2000.

•   Fingers to the Bone: United States Failure to Protect Child Farmworkers, by Human Rights Watch, June 2000.

•   Pesticides: Improvements Needed to Ensure the Safety of Farmworkers and Their Children, General Accounting Office, GAO/RCED-00-40, March 2000. 

•   “Children as Chattels: The Disturbing Plight of Child Performers,” by Marc R. Staenberg, Esq. And Daniel K. Stuart, Esq., Beverly Hills Entertainment Lawyers Association Journal, April 1999.

•   Protecting Youth At Work: Health, Safety, and Development of Working Children and Adolescents in the United States, by the National Research Council and Institute of Medicine, 1998.

•  Child Labor in Agriculture: Changes Needed to Better Protect Health and Educational Opportunities, General Accounting Office, GAO/HEHS-98-193, 1998.

•   “Young Performers Survey: The Relationship Between Professional Experience, Parenting History and Adult Adjustment,” by Lisa Rapport, Ph.D., Wayne State University, Journal of Psychological Assessment, July 1998.  

•  Children: The Invisible Soldiers, by Rachel Brett and Margaret McCallin, Radda Barnen, 1998.

•   Children in Agriculture: Opportunities for Safety and Health.  A National Action Plan, by the National Committee for Childhood Agricultural Injury Prevention, 1996.

•   “Infant TV Actors Are Overworked, Critics Charge,” The Washington Post, June 6, 1996.

Identification of Legislative, Regulatory, and Enforcement Corrective Measures:

The NGO Working Group concludes that the National Program of Action must include the following changes to U.S. law and practice to facilitate full compliance with ILO Convention 182:

•  Fair Labor Standards Act:  Eliminate the exemptions (from minimum age, hours of work, hazardous work, time of day of work) that apply to the following activities:

• wreath making

• newspaper delivery

• hired agricultural labor

•  Fair Labor Standards Act:  Eliminate the exemptions and regulate with age appropriate standards the following activities:

• actors and performers in motion pictures, theatrical, radio and television, circus,  and other entertainment venues[1]

• athletics

•  Fair Labor Standards Act:  (a) The age 18 minimum for Hazardous Orders (HOs) should apply in all industries, including agriculture, and regardless of who the employer is.   (b) Update the HOs to take account of the changes in technology, hazardous substances, and work patterns that have occurred in the nearly 30 years since most of the HOs were last amended.  HOs should be applied to all industries, so that, for example, a machine or device found hazardous for workers under age 18 should not be permitted to be used in agriculture when it is forbidden in all other industries.  (c) Review each HO and set age-specific regulations for tasks and ensure that risk assessment methodologies take into account appropriate ages for tasks.  (d) Ensure prior approval for exposure by children of chemical substances by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) before the exposure of children to such substances is approved.  This will assure that the EPA applies a child-specific test.  Presently, the EPA uses a 154-lb adult as the standard by which to measure exposure to hazards.  (e) Provide for automatic review (every 5 years) of HOs, taking into account changes in the workplace, machinery, injuries, and new hazards to identify revisions and additions to the HOs.  Once HOs are established, compelling/reliable evidence must be presented to repeal or weaken an HO. 

•  OSHA:  Apply OSHA regulations to all farms regardless of size/the number of workers on the farm (thereby including farms with fewer than 11 employees, which are not presently covered by OSHA).  Apply safety standards to all work environments where appropriate (including agriculture and the entertainment industry when minors are employed).  Set standards appropriate for young workers for OSHA regulations that apply to equipment or safety gear.

•  U.S. Congress:  Legislation drafted and enacted for:

• Criminal penalties for travel agencies, travel agents and tour packagers and operators who book and/or operate travel services and tours that include sexual contact between a tourist and children, including such domestic or international travel.
  

• Punitive legislation to force the military to create and enforce a plan to eliminate military personnel involvement in child prostitution and the creation and implementation of an education plan to train military on this issue.
  

• Interstate trafficking of children

•  Secure Senate ratification of the Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict.  It would prohibit the armed forces from using members under the age of 18 to participate in hostilities and would ensure that any voluntary recruitment before age 18 is done with certain safeguards, including parental permission and proof of age.

The NGO Working Group recommends these additional changes to U.S. law and practice to strengthen protection of youth from the worst forms of child labor:

•  Reconstitute the U.S. Department of Labor’s Child Labor Advisory Committee representing child advocacy groups, employers, unions, educators, civic organizations, child guidance professionals, state officials, safety specialists, and safety groups.  Broaden the spectrum of representation to include a youth representative, youth medical experts, industrial engineer specialists, child labor enforcement personnel, workers compensation experts, and labor statisticians.  The committee could function as the research and evaluation arm of the DOL in determining appropriate action in reviewing, updating, and improving the child labor provisions of the FLSA.  The 21 member advisory committee was established in 1988.

•  Review and respond to the recommendations of the Committee on the Health and Safety Implications of Child Labor that are designed to protect young people in the workplace through education and through updated, enhanced, and adequately enforced laws and regulations.  The recommendations are outlined in Protecting Youth at Work: Health, Safety, and Development of Working Children and Adolescents in the United States, by the National Research Council/Institute of Medicine, 1998.

•  Fair Labor Standards Act:  Increase the civil money penalties for child labor violations.  Amend the FLSA to provide for a private right of action for statutory damages and injunctive relief, as well as actual damages such as expenses for medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering.  Expand use by the U.S. Department of Labor of hot goods injunctions in situations in which children are producing goods that will be shipped in interstate commerce  

•  Fair Labor Standards Act:  Decrease the number of hours that can be worked in a day and a week, and the restrictions on the time of day during which work can be performed, by (a) expanding to all industries (including agriculture) such restrictions that now apply only in the retail, food service, and gasoline service station industries, and by (b) reducing the number of permissible work hours for 14- and 15-year-olds in all industries to 3 hrs/day; 15 hrs/week during school weeks and 6 hrs/day; 30 hrs./week during non-school weeks.  Set hours restrictions for 16- and 17-year olds who are enrolled in school to a maximum of 4 hrs/day and 20 hrs/week when school is in session.

•  Fair Labor Standards Act:  Regulate school-based and non-school based vocational training to set safety regulations related to student use of power machinery and exposure to chemicals.  Ensure supervision and adequate health and safety training.

•  Fair Labor Standards Act:  Amend provisions concerning interstate qualification, the

“goods at rest” doctrine, and dollar amounts to extend FLSA coverage, allowing employees

engaged in youth peddling (such as traveling youth crews) to be subject to federal child

labor protections.  

•  OSHA:  There should be closer coordination between OSHA inspectors and DOL Wage and Hour Division (W&H) inspectors so that the former can do a better job of discovering and bringing to the latter information about potential child labor violations.  In particular, OSHA investigators should flag incidents involving minors and refer such incidents to DOL W&H for investigation of possible child labor violations and employers should be required to inform OSHA of minors present in the workplace at the commencement of an OSHA investigation. 

•  Remove diplomatic immunity regarding child trafficking for domestic service work and the commercial sexual exploitation of children.   

•  State child labor laws:  Those states that exempt agriculture from the protections of their child labor laws should amend their laws to provide such protection.  Those states whose child labor laws are less protective than federal child labor standards under the FLSA should amend their laws to increase the protections accordingly.

•  State worker compensation laws:  (a) State workers compensation laws should not exclude or exempt child workers from coverage, particularly not workers in agriculture.  (b) The rule in some states that a workers compensation benefit is increased if a job-related injury results from a child labor violation should be adopted by all states.  (c) If a child is injured or killed on the job when working in violation of the child labor laws, the child (or the child’s heirs) should have the option, in their discretion, to file a workers compensation claim or a negligent injury (or wrongful death) claim. 

Education & Training

The NGO Working Group recommends the following changes to strengthen protection of youth from the worst forms of child labor:

•   Overhaul the education system for agricultural migrant children, providing for their adequate record-transmission, testing, placement, education and educational opportunities, aimed at equalizing their high school graduation rates with those of residential children.

•   Workforce Investment Act (WIA Section 129):  Increase funding for children in the 14 and older age bracket.  Programs currently operate in 10 states.  Additionally recommend a program for 12 years and older migrant children that are a high-risk group for school drop out. 

•   Develop and implement cultural-specific education initiatives to keep at-risk youth in school and to transition out of school children engaged in the worst forms of child labor back into education.

•   Require a national employment permit for minors under age 18.  Develop and require minors to pass a labor rights test before obtaining their first employment permit.

•   Educate the public about the worst forms of child labor in the United States.  Develop a national campaign to raise awareness on the worst forms of child labor and the federal laws, protections, and programs addressing these worst forms.

•   Develop and implement a pilot program to train teachers, health professionals, social workers, employers, etc., on the worst forms of child labor (i.e., what to look for, problems, exploitation, etc).

Cultural Reform & Social Protection

The NGO Working Group recommends the following changes to strengthen protection of youth from the worst forms of child labor:

•   Review Guestworker program and its impact on stimulating child labor problems (i.e., males are recruited to work in U.S. and often end up under debt bondage.  Women and children are left in Central America to fend for themselves).

•   Increase federal funding for prevention and outreach on sex work/sex trafficking for affected youth in the areas of rehabilitation and education and transitional housing.

•   Develop a national level social marketing campaign targeting the worst forms of child labor in the United States.  Ensure the campaign uses culturally appropriate language for the intended audience.  Tailor to each sector and audience.

•   Assure that migrant families have a continuum of health care benefits as they travel from state to state.  This should include S-CHIP coverage for all migrant children.

Attachment 1

List of the NGO Working Group  

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Participating Organizations: