Youth Peddling: Kids in Danger

Federal Government, State Association, and NGOs 
launch national campaign

WASHINGTON, DC...The U.S. Department of Labor, the Interstate Labor Standards Association, and the national Child Labor Coalition have joined forces to launch a national campaign on youth peddling. Estimating that 50,000 youth are involved in selling candy and other consumer items door-to-door and on city street corners, the coalition effort focuses on the illegal employment of minors, the safety of young workers, and deceptive sales to consumers.

At a meeting today, the USDOL unveiled a national enforcement clearinghouse, which will help federal and state enforcement agencies to track companies and their operations, as well as strengthen investigations and prosecutions. "Too many children are being abused by the youth peddling industry," said Secretary of Labor Alexis M. Herman. "Many of these operations present themselves as charitable and civic-minded groups, but they are in fact, for-profit businesses that prey on a young and vulnerable workforce. We will educate parents and young people about the dangers of this practice, while working with state labor officials to enforce the law to protect children from being exploited."

A recent ILSA survey of states found that children as young as eight years old are transported to unfamiliar neighborhoods, distant cities, and even across state lines. The most prevalent age range is 12 to 16 years and youth are commonly found working more than 100 miles from their city of residence. "When ILSA members began comparing notes on this issue, we realized several things. First, we were investigating the same company/people. Second, kids were being transported across state lines to work, challenging our jurisdictional authority," says Colleen Strasburg, chair of ILSA's Youth Peddling Committee. "When we began to investigate, the company just picked up and moved on to the next state. This discovery underscored the need for a national clearinghouse."

Cases are reported where minors are sexually assaulted, unsupervised and even deserted, and working under hazardous conditions. "The question is, 'Would you want your child in this situation,'" says Linda Golodner, CLC co-chair. "Just because it is called a job does not mean you can assume it is safe. Youth peddlers are not only exploited workers, but endangered workers. This is the central message of the campaign."

CLC is a national group which works to end child labor exploitation in the U.S. and abroad and to protect the health, education, and safety of working minors. The CLC is comprised of more than 50 organizations, reflecting educators, health groups, religious and women's groups, human rights groups, consumer groups, labor unions, and child labor advocates. The coalition is coordinated by the National Consumers League.

ILSA is an organization of state labor department officials who are responsible for administering and enforcing state labor laws, including child labor laws.

For more information, write the National Consumers League at 1701 K Street, N. W., Suite 1200, Washington, DC 20006; 202-835-3323.