Child Labor in the Philippines

Child labor is a common problem in the Philippines. The majority of these children work as laborers and unskilled workers, and are often exposed to hazardous working environments in industries such as mining, fishing, domestic service, garbage scavenging, and agriculture, especially sugar cane plantations. A significant number of children are also employed in the informal sector of the urban economy as domestic workers or as unpaid family workers in rural agricultural areas. NGO and government officials reported cases in 2010 in which family members sold children to employers for domestic labor or sexual exploitation.

Children are also vulnerable to various military groups in the Philippines. The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), a separatist group, and the New People’s Army (NPA) have been identified by the United Nations as among the world’s persistent perpetrators of violations against children in armed conflict, including forcing children into service. During 2010, there were continued reports to the United Nations that the Abu Sayyaf Group targeted children for conscription as both combatants and noncombatants.

Causes:

• Conflict between MILF and the Armed Forces of the Philippines;
• Poverty, population growth, and dependency burdens have lead some parents to see child labor as a means to cope with meager family income;
• Persistent poverty, especially in rural areas, high unemployment and underemployment and constraints to small and medium enterprises growth are a few of the challenges facing the Filipino labor force that have lead many to migrate for work;  
• An estimated 900,000 undocumented Filipinos, mostly based in Mindanao, whose lack of official documentation contributes to the population’s vulnerability to trafficking.

Recommendation:

Make efforts to improve collaboration between victim service organizations and law enforcement authorities with regards to law enforcement operations.

If you think someone is a victim of child labor in your town, would you report it?

Your thoughts.......


****research gathered from reliable report of joint UN and East Asian countries.