ITUC demands urgent action to end child labor

As stakeholders around the world prepare to mark the 2024 World Day Against Child Labor tomorrow, the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) has called for urgent action to end child labor in line with global commitments and goals .

ITUC General Secretary Luc Triangle said in a statement: “The world promised children to end child labor by 2025, as set out in SDG target 8.7. But today there are still 160 million children working. Governments must step up their efforts to combat poverty and social injustice and propose urgent rights-based actions, as set out in the Durban Call for Action. They can learn a lot from the work done by unions.

“The Ghana Trade Union Congress affiliate, the General Agricultural Workers Union, introduced a child labor clause into collective agreements, campaigned on children’s right to education and advocated a regional approach to end child labor with the support of the Global March Against Children. Work.

“In Bangladesh, with the support of ITUC-Asia-Pacific, unions have joined forces to accelerate the elimination of child labor by organizing workers and rescue missions, advocating for stricter regulations and enforcement effective.

“An increase in exploitation of immigrant children by corporations in unsafe workplaces in the United States has led the AFL-CIO to renew its call for strong laws to prevent child labor abuses and to hold employers accountable by increasing penalties.

“In the Netherlands, CNV and FNV are actively working to eliminate child labor in supply chains through agreements with Dutch companies on responsible business conduct internationally. Their affiliates also support unions in Asia and Africa in creating child labor-free zones.

Triangle added: “As long as workers continue to fight for decent wages and adequate social protection, we will see the scourge of child labor. We want a new social contract for decent work for all workers, so that parents can earn a good living and children can learn at school. To achieve these reforms, we need democracy in every workplace and beyond, so workers always have a say.

“Ending corporate greed is essential to ending child labor. This means doing due diligence in global supply chains and holding companies accountable for their exploitation of workers and children, particularly in agriculture, where more than 70 percent of child labor occurs.

“We urge all nations to improve their implementation of ILO Convention 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labor and we call for the ratification of Convention 138 on the Minimum Age by the 11 governments that do not haven’t done yet.

“Governments should also use the Future Compact to be adopted at the SDG Future Summit in September 2024 to step up efforts to eradicate forced labor, end modern slavery and human trafficking. human beings and eliminate all forms of child labor.

To mark the World Day Against Child Labour, a high-level event will take place at the International Labor Conference, which can be followed online.

On June 20, the Global March Against Child Labor is organizing an event to present its territorial approach.

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