Child labour in Europe

According to the Commissioner for Human Rights for the Council of Europe, Nils Muižnieks, child labour might be growing in Europe in the wake of the economic crisis. Governments need to monitor this situation and to use the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the European Social Charter as guidance for preventive and remedial action.
Vulnerable people are always disproportionately affected in times of economic down-turn. The link between declining economic growth and increasing child labour is therefore no surprise. With the recession many European countries have drastically cut social aid. As unemployment soars, many families have found no other solution than sending their children to work.
The prevalence of child labour in developing countries is a well-known problem - according to the International Labour Organisation today more than 250 million children between the ages of 5 and 14 work. In trying to map the situation in Europe, however, my Office has found that information is very sparse. In fact, it seems to be a taboo subject. But we have been able to accumulate enough information to see a grim picture.
Source: The Council of Europe Commissioner's human rights comment


Submitted by admin on Fri, 2013-08-23 07:48.