Child Labor In Third World Countries

In history class my freshman year, we were going over the industrial revolution when the teacher showed us pictures of small children covered in dirt working dangerous machines in factories. Trying to teach us the negative history of child labor, our teacher explained various incidents in which children were hurt on the job, over worked, underpaid, and largely unhappy. Because of this, I, along with many of my peers, walked away from class that day with the conclusion that all child labor is bad. Sadly, many people share the same view point on child labor as my peers and I did after learning about it in history class and fail to see the other side of child labor; that child labor can actually be good. Despite the common misconception that child
In the article “Child Labor Pros and Cons”, the author discusses the importance of child labor in many families, saying, “In poor countries like Bangladesh, working children are essential for survival of many families” (1). In many areas in which child labor is common, financial stability is lacking. For example, Bangladesh, a third world country, legally employs children ages fourteen and up. One main reason many children work in this country is to bring in income in order to help support their families. Without their financial support, families would be unable to afford housing, food, clothing, and other necessities that they are otherwise to purchase. Although working as a child is far from ideal, it helps both the child and their family to have what they need to live
In the article “Regulated Child Labor Is Necessary in Developing Countries”, author John J. Tierney talks about the International Labour Organization’s definition of child labor, writing, “According to the ILO (Convention No. 138), the term child labor generally refers to any economic activity performed by a person under the age of 15” (qtd. in 1). Tierney goes on to point out the problem with the generalization of child labor, stating, “Not all of this, of course, is harmful or exploitative. Certain types of work, such as apprenticeship or family-related chores after school, can be a formative and constructive learning experience” (1). When the term “child labor” is given a general definition, many people just think of the unhealthy labor and fail to see that not all jobs are like that. Because the term is so broad, all child labor is frowned upon, not just some. One major misconception of child labor is how old some of the children are, as the term “child laborer” is any child under the age of fifteen. When looking closer at the age group, it is apparent that although some of the children are still young, there are children who are actually teenagers and are capable of doing a variety of jobs. Similarly, many people fail to see that there are plenty of jobs for children that are not hazardous, such as helping with a family business, being an apprentice, or doing