Question

A visiting American executive finds that a foreign subsidiary that produces cigarettes in a less-developed country has hired a 12-year-old girl to work on a factory floor making cigarettes, in violation of the company’s prohibition of child labor. He tells the local manager to replace the child and send her back to school. The local manager tells the American executive that the child is an orphan with no other means of support, and she will probably become a street child if she is denied work. What should the American executive do?

Answer 1

First of all, the company executive should have a communication with the company officials and make them aware  on the fact that they should respect the company law on the prohibition of child labour. Therefore, nobody under the age of 18 years should be engaged in hazardous work that is wok damaging to a child's physical, social, mental and psychological development. At the same time, not all work under the age of 18 years is child labour. It depends both on the age and on the types and conditions of work. Thus, the provision of work opportunities for adolescents under adequate conditions, rather than excluding them entirely from employment opportunities , is one of the effective measures to eliminate child labour, including its worst forms. Efforts and actions to eliminate the worst forms of child labour should be given special attention.

He should also make the company aware of certain steps they can take inorder to prevent child labour such as

1. Consider ways to build the capacity of business partners to combat child labour such as the provision of training and incentives.

2. Fix the wage level for the adult employees so that they can support their families without depending on children's earning.

3. To the extent possible, help the child removed from workplace and his/her family to access adequate services and viable alternatives.

4. Provide financial incentives such as school grants for employees children, paying bonus for employees children completing certain education level, establishing day care at the work place or nearby inorder to avoid younger children not enroliing in school and instead starting work, proving after school recreational facilities for children to do homework and play which will keep them out of work.

5. Raise awareness of the value of education.

6. Joined efforts than taking individual actions to address the issue. Also, to act in cooperation with other companies to make the government aware of their role in combating child labour such as

*free compulsory schooling

*appropriate training opportunities for teachers.

*the construction of additional classrooms.

* provision of funds for non-formal educational opportunities for school dropouts and vulnerable children.

* skill training programmes for children withdrawn from the strrets.

* effective enforcement of child labour laws.