Child Labor in Philippine

All people were born with rights. Children are people as well; so, children also have theirs. Their right have been violated from child labor. Child labor is defined as, “the employment of a child in a business or industry especially in violation of state or federal statutes prohibiting the employment of children under a specified age.” Obviously, child labor has been a big social problem from over the world, mainly the third wrodl countries or developing country such as Philippines. This paper will argue the cases of child laborers, specifically in the city and in provinces of the Philippines. The social problem in Philippines, the government has ways to manage and improve it or not or even made it disappeared or not. It is a known fact that the disadvantages outnumber the advantages of child labor. There are three points, so that it is easier to view the advantages and the disadvantages of the said problem. Having a history background of Philippines which will have understand what is going on better. The purpose of this argument paper is to present the increasing amount of child labor in Philippines and how they were harm. Another would be to discuss the effects of child labor to the family, economy, and to the self. Lastly, the paper will suggest ways to stop or reduce child labor.

In the pass industrial background of child labor first appeared with the development of the developing country’s system. In this type of business a dealer bought raw materials to be “put out” to the homes of worker to be spun, woven, sewn, or handled in some other materials. This allows a division of labor and a level of specialization among different types of people. Products are paid by pieces, and children were commonly used at whatever task they could perform. In England and North America, this system was important from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century and is still being seen up to the present in some industries and, in some country including Philippines. (Labor) The kids were forced to beg on the streets and help making money for the professional beggars. The children that are prostitute help trading with the tourist. The girls were used as a servant in a private home and being treated no better than slave. Many children were brought from the dumpsites and put on the street to make money. Children are being use as a runner helping distribute illegal drugs in to the city. The nubile girl working as a striper and night and teenage exposing their skin than necessary on the theater screen. Truly, child labor has many faces. Children performed these can either endangers their health or safety, interferes with their education or prevent them from playing other activities that are important to their development. The children can not really survive. (Heineman, 2001) Most of the children must be kept inside so that they could not be seen by the public. They would mostly be working in factories at night or as prostitutes at night. Cloth factory in Philippine uses child labor to produce goods and export the goods to the United States. (Deshpande, 2008) The reason the number of child labor is increasing because they were taken from other province and were promised with good live. Another is that they were forced to work due to poverty. Since industrious works are more suitable for children than compared to other people who are in the right age to work.

Child slave labor is to use the illegal working children below 18 years of age in danger job. Underage children are being forced to do physical labor to help their families mainly due to poverty. About 2.06 million all around the Philippines are forced to do labor, such as in crop plantations, mining caves, rock mining, and factories. Due to the poverty problems that are not being help from the government, the number of child labor will continue increasing. (Deshpande, 2008)Child labor has many health effects in children who are supposed to be in the environment of a classroom rather than walking on the streets and risking every chance, over and over again, to earn money. Although most do get the privilege of education, most end up being dropouts and repeaters because they are not able to focus on their studies. Because of child labor, children suffer from starvation, the ability to grow, and improper health development. (Deshpande, 2008)The problems of child laboring continue to grow, so the economics of the country will drop rapidly. People with proper education will not get job due to higher salary payment compare to illegal child labor. The cost of child labor is incredibly low comparing to workers with high education. Philippines is a young nation with high percentage number of young people in its overall population. There are up to 22.4 million children ages between five and seventeen. Sixteen percent of the overall population represent working children ages between five and seven, which means that one of every six children work. In the last twelve months, 3.7 million children ages five to seventeen worked. Children from rural area make up 67.1 percent of this number and almost half are between the ages of five and fourteen. These working children are mostly all boys, who account for 65 percent. As far as the locations where these children work, 60 percent perform unpaid family work in their own households, 17.2 percent work in their own homes and 53 percent work in family farms. (Group, 2002)

The impact of the children’s health is a big problem for some country. The illness and death of family income head family means that the children has to go out and find money. A child that has health problem maybe judge unfairly and their work most of the time affect with their education. Child that believes to be clean from disease maybe put on the street as a prostitute. There is very few information available about the reason of disability on child labor – research is deeply needed in this area. However, there is evidence of children being intentionally disabled for use such as begging. Furthermore, it is noticeable that disability can lead to poverty. (Group, 2002) By disabled children can weaken the poverty organization and there are higher risk of treating people unfairly. Anecdotal evidence believed that like women, disabled children are less likely to get equal pay for equal work. Most of the work for children is and dangerous job that require the risk of their health daily. If children are disabled from doing work, they would not be getting reward or very less, however their live may have been ruined forever and damage to their life and future. This is why there are increasing risk of people treating unfairly and poverty. The same is true for those who have HIV/AIDS or STIs or are raped at work. Sexually oppressed children is the mainly risk here. Child labor continues to live throughout the world. Children have to work because their survival and that of their families depend on it, and in some cases, because dishonest adults take advantage of their weakness. Child labor is caused from weaknesses in education systems and is deeply rooted in cultural and social attitudes and traditions. The problem is more by the fact that child labor is kept away from public view, making the problem seem less of an important. What can be done about child labor? 1. Prioritize education. It is a fact that the countries with a lot of child labor are worst at education than those that spend more primary education. Primary education should be free, made it important, well-resourced, and located everywhere. It is much easier to keep track on school attendance that to check on factories and workshops. It might make us feel good, but it only helps educate one child, isolating them from others in their community. (Group, 2002)2. Give the jobs of child workers to the adult that is capable of working. This way, the family does not suffer, and indeed should be better off, as adult wages are generally much higher than child wages. (Group, 2002)

All in all, child labor can be widely spread in Philippine, but that are more disadvantage of using child labor than advantage. Government has to come in to help set law more stricty. Children labor are get harm both my mental and psychical. They are not able to live in a normal society because of their difference, both from accident or harm to make people feel sorry. All these things can be help if the government gives more attention to education and give jobs to the people that are allegeable to do work and band all the factories or any organization that use child under age.