FORMS AND EXTENT OF CHILD LABOR IN THE
MUNICIPALITY OF PANIT-AN, CAPIZ
A THESIS PROPOSAL
Presented to
the Faculty of the School of Graduate Studies
CENTRAL PHILIPPINE UNIVERSITY
Jaro, Iloilo City
In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree
MASTER OF SCIENCE IN SOCIAL WORK
By
ANGEL LOU D. DE ASIS
November 2020
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CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
According to Gordon Brown, United Nations Special Envoy for Global
Education, all people were children once. Majority of the society wants children to
grow up in a world that provides them with security, joy, and a chance to develop
their potential. The idea that children should be forced into exploitative or dangerous
employment or into activities that compromise their safety, their security and their
dreams is one that most of people would view with horror. This idea that the world
is trying to eradicate is called child labor.
The most common definition of child labor is when a child participates in a
variety of work situations, on a more or less regular basis, to earn a livelihood for
himself or herself or for others (Ateneo Human Rights Center, 1998). The layman’s
definition, however, does not reflect aspects of work situations that are considered
offensive to society. This is where the distinction between child work and child labor
is drawn.
The International Labor Organization- International Program on the
Elimination of Child Labor (ILO-IPEC) defines child labor as “work situations where
children are compelled to work on a regular basis to earn a living for themselves
and their families, and as a result are disadvantaged educationally and socially;
where children work in conditions that are exploitative and damaging to their health
and to their physical and mental development; where children are separated from
their families; often deprived of educational and training opportunities; where
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children are forced to lead prematurely adult lives.” In the Philippines, child labor is
defined in Republic Act No.7658 as “illegal employment of children below the age
of fifteen years old, where they are not directly under the sole responsibility of their
parents or legal guardian, or the latter employs other workers apart from their
children, who are not members of their families, or their work endangers their life,
safety, health and morals or impairs their normal development including schooling.
It also includes the situation of children below the age of eighteen years old who are
employed in hazardous occupations.” The definition is consistent with the Philippine
definition of the child (a person below eighteen years of age) and the internationally
accepted definition of child labor (Alonzo and Edillon, 2010)
With this context, the evidence set out in the report on child labor of Gordon
(2011) entitled Child Labor and Educational Disadvantage – Breaking the Link,
Building Opportunity, is both a shocking indictment of the world one lives in and a
call to action. The report cited that child labor is the new slavery of the present time.
The indictment is partially captured in the headline numbers. There are 215 million
children aged 5-17 years old involved in child labor. Over half of these children are
under the age of 15. Some 91 million are under 12. Bluntly stated, all of them have
a right to expect something better of the world. Wherever they live, children have a
claim on one’s care – and the international community has a responsibility to protect
their right to a childhood. Yet efforts to combat child labor are failing in the face of
inertia, indifference and an indefensible willingness on the part of too many
governments, international agencies, and aid donors to turn a blind eye (Gordon,
2011).
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Current trends are a source of great concern. Child labor is falling, but overall
numbers are coming down far more slowly than might have been anticipated in the
light of the stronger economic growth performance of poor countries. On a businessas-usual pathway, it is predicted that there will be 170 -190 million child laborers in
2020. The data from sub-Saharan Africa is particularly worrying. With one quarter
of the region’s children already involved in child labor, labor market participation by
children has been rising. The trend analysis suggests the number of child laborers
in sub-Saharan Africa could rise by around 15 million over the next decade, reaching
reach 65 million by 2020.
Child labor takes many forms. Agriculture is by far the largest sector
employing children, with unpaid family farm work dominating. Some 60 million
children are involved. Young girls who should be in school are collecting water and
firewood, or caring for siblings. In West Africa, an estimated 2 million children are
involved in cultivating cocoa, while some 400,000 children are working on India’s
cotton seed farms (Gordon, 2011). In addition, mining and quarrying is another
magnet for child labor. In Mali, children as young as six are involved in digging shafts
for artisanal gold mining, working in tunnels, hauling rock, and using toxic chemicals
to separate gold and ore. From the Philippines, across sub-Saharan Africa to Bolivia
and Peru, as many as 2 million children worldwide are working in small scale mines.
Moreover, another 14 million child laborers are involved in manufacturing, many of
them working in small sweatshops, home industries and brick kilns. On one
estimate, around half of the workforce in Afghanistan’s brick kilns is aged less than
14. On the other hand, domestic service is one of the least visible and most
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hazardous forms of child labor. The International Labor Organization (ILO)
estimates that nearly 30 percent of the 50-100 million people employed as domestic
workers worldwide are children. In countries as diverse as Indonesia, Morocco, India
and Nigeria, it is not uncommon for young girls to be working more than twelve hours
a day for less than the minimum wage. Many of these girls are facing acute risks.
One survey in Bangladesh found that almost 70 percent of girls involved in domestic
service experienced physical abuse and systematic beatings.
In the Philippines, children are engaged in child labor, including in the
production of sugarcane, and in the worst forms of child labor, including in forced
domestic work and commercial sexual exploitation (Philippines in Trafficking in
Persons Report, 2015). The 2011 National Survey on Children indicated that 3.2
million children are engaged in child labor, of which approximately 3 million work in
hazardous labor. Most child labor occurs in the informal sector, with approximately
60 percent of these children working in agriculture. With this, in 2015, the Philippines
made a significant advancement in efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labor.
Government agencies signed a joint memorandum on the Rescue and
Rehabilitation of Abused Domestic Workers, which established a protocol for
interagency coordination on efforts to rescue and assist exploited domestic workers,
including child domestic workers. The Inter-Agency Council against Trafficking
established five new regional task forces to support enforcement of criminal laws
related to child labor and provided training on trafficking in persons to a total of 3,693
government personnel and 5,972 non-government participants. In addition, the
Inter-Agency Council against Child Pornography adopted a new strategic plan that
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aims to eradicate child pornography in the Philippines (Philippines in Trafficking in
Persons Report, 2015).
Following the 2015 findings, the Philippines made a moderate advancement
in efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labor. The government passed the
Free Internet Access in Public Places Act, which aims to prevent and combat the
online sexual exploitation of children. The government also amended the Guidelines
in Assessing and Determining Hazardous Work in the Employment of Persons
Below 18 Years of Age to include more agricultural work activities. In addition, the
Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) piloted a referral system
to connect children engaged in small-scale gold mining to social services. Although
the government made meaningful efforts in all relevant areas during the reporting
period, it did not adequately protect children engaged in drug trafficking from
inappropriate incarceration, penalties, or physical harm. In addition, the
enforcement of child labor laws remains challenging, especially due to the limited
number of inspectors, lack of resources for inspections, and inspectors’ inability to
assess penalties. Children in the Philippines engage in the worst forms of child
labor, including in armed conflict, and in commercial sexual exploitation, sometimes
as a result of human trafficking. Children also perform dangerous tasks in agriculture
and gold mining (Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor, 2017).
In Western Visayas, the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) had
pronounced that the state of child labor in the region is “alarming” that it conducted
surveillance to rescue the victims and provide them assistance. In the article
published by Manila Bulletin last 2018, the labor regional director, revealed that most
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of the child laborers in the region are doing dangerous work in the sugarcane fields,
mines and fireworks industry and pointed out that Region VI with 171,744 people as
of 2011 is No. 4 on the list of provinces with the most number of child laborers since
it is mostly agricultural land and it cannot be discounted that children work in the
field because of poverty and in our culture children are often brought by their parents
to
work
(https://www.manilatimes.net/2018/02/15/news/regions/child-labor-
wvisayas-alarming-dole-director/380264/)
Panitan, officially the Municipality of Panitan, is a 3rd class municipality in the
province of Capiz, Philippines. According to the 2015 census, it has a population of
40,289 people (Census of Population, 2015). It is mostly agricultural wherein most
families’ livelihood is centered on farming. A considerable number of children below
15 years old are seen helping their parents to till the land and especially during
harvest season. Others, on the other hand, are hired by other people to assist in
doing agricultural jobs in exchange of a small amount of money as remuneration.
This situation has already been normalized in the different barangays of the
municipality since it has not been given a big of a deal by the authorities. However,
the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office of Panitan has only recorded
25 cases of child labor throughout the municipality as of this writing.
It is in this premise that forms and extent of child labor in Panitan needs to
be given adequate attention, a spotlight that would reveal the reality that young
children face each day that are stealing their youth, their right to a comfortable life,
their right to education and their right to live just like how children should. This
perennial issue needs to stop because if not, this will continuously degrade the role
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of the youth to take over the country for nation-building and progress. It is in this
light that this study was conceived and conceptualized.
Objectives of the Study
This study intends to determine the forms and extent of Child Labor in the
Municipality of Panit-an.
Specifically, this study seeks to:
1. Determine the personal and household profiles of the respondents in terms
of: age, gender, religion, birth order, educational attainment, monthly family
income, parent’s occupation, parent’s education, and family size.
2. Determine the different forms child labor in the Municipality of Panit-an.
3. Determine the specific nature of work of children engaged in different forms
of child labor.
4. Determine the extent of child labor in the Municipality of Panit-an.
5. Determine how the basic needs of children engaged in child labor are
arranged.
6. Determine the major reason of working of children engaged in child labor.
Hypotheses of the Study
Based on the objectives of the study, the following hypotheses will be
tested:
1. There are no significant relationships between personal profile and forms of
child labor in the Municipality of Panit-an.
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2. There are no significant relationships between household profile and forms
of child labor in the Municipality of Panit-an.
3. There are no significant relationship between personal profiles of the
respondents and extent of child labor in the Municipality of Panit-an.
4. There are no significant relationship between household profiles of the
respondents and extent of child labor in the Municipality of Panit-an.
Theoretical Framework
This study finds its foundation in Emile Durkheim’s Functionalist Theory (1958).
Child labor could be anchored to the functionalist theory of Emile Durkheim
(1958-1902). His work contains various explanations of social facts and describes
as what define the general needs of the social organism. The growing incidence of
child labor may due to the increasing dysfunctionalism of the leading institution in
our society. The phenomenon of child laborer is a social fact that is difficult to
eliminate in society (social system) because it is still functional for social structures
such as family, business, and child laborer itself. Various policies and regulations
have been made by the government, but the implementation has not been effective
in dealing with child laborer issues.
In the theory of structural functionalism (Holmwood, 2010), it was explained
that society is a social system composed of interrelated parts or elements, unified
in order and balance. Changes that occur in one part can cause changes to other
parts. Furthermore, Soepeno (2017) elucidated that the basic assumption is that
every structure in the social system is functional to the other, also dis-function for
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other structures when the structure has negative consequences. The concept of
function, in this case, is understood as a result of changes in structure and/or social
institutions that can be observed toward adaptation and adjustment of social
systems. While the concept of dysfunction, as well as the social structures and
institutions that contribute to the preservation of social facts, these social structures
and institutions can also give negative effects to the social system. The advocates
of this theory argued that the object of sociological analysis based on the social fact
paradigm is social roles, institutional patterns (social order), social processes, group
organization, and social control.
The social facts around child labor based on the theory of structural
functionalism perspective can be explained that the social fact of child labor is an
established social reality (institutionalized) relating to the existence of social
structures and institutions around it. The transformation of the function of a family
institution as an institution of child care into an economic institution has an impact
on the emergence of child labor. In this case, the child is an element of social
structure that acts as the breadwinner of the family to sustain the economic needs
of the family. Therefore functional child labor is for the family. For entrepreneurs, the
existence of child labor is also functional, with the employment of underage children
entrepreneurs benefit since the incomes paid are cheap. In place of for the child,
working is functional to meet the basic needs (pocket money, clothes and
entertainment purchases), it is also dysfunctional since the child will lose the time to
learn, play, and interact with family members. Especially, if a child is exploited in his
work, it can have an impact on his physical and mental health. The positive and
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negative impacts associated with child laborers have a particular purpose and are
recognized in the social system, which is the function of the manifest. While the
positive and negative effects that are not accepted by the social system (the
existence of child laborers) are called latency functions (Soepeno and Suyadi, 2017).
In conducting a social analysis of child laborers using structural functionalism
theories that need to be observed are as follows: (a). Different social types are both
whole and part; (B). Various types are due to these patterns for empirically
determined empirical requirements, and (c). It is the process by which a pattern
arises and has consequences for the element system as well as the whole. By
describing the shape of the analysis will be met the requirements of functional
analysis (Merton, 1974 in Soepeno, 2017).
The use of the theory of structural functionalism as an explanation tool of
social reality as described aforementioned by Merton (retrieved 2020) that should
be directed to the full mutual consequences of the parts of the system as a whole,
when the parts and all of them have the necessary conditions system resilience.
The conditions must be established empirically. This is since only through a clear
understanding of actual requirements or concrete systems, the need for social
structure can be defined as a useful criterion for discovering the consequences, or
functions of social elements. Furthermore, if the analysis of the consequences of
the elements is a characteristic of functional analysis, then the details of causal
processes generated in one particular element have consequences for both the
other and the system as a whole. The social facts of child labor, what is meant by
elements of the social system is the socioeconomic family, the availability of
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employment in the community, the values and cultural norms of society,
as well
as an educational institution. All of them have functional and dysfunctional
characteristics of the existence of child laborers.
Conceptual Framework
In the Philippines, there are 2.1 million child labourers aged 5-17 years old
based on the 2011 Survey on Children of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
About 95 per cent of them are in hazardous work. Sixty-nine per cent of these are
aged 15-17 years old, beyond the minimum allowable age for work but still
exposed to hazardous work.
The independent variable in this study is the personal profile including age,
gender, religion, birth order, in school status and educational attainment; and,
household profile of the respondents that will include monthly family income,
parent’s occupation, parents education and family size. The dependent variable
are the forms (Agriculture, Fishing, Domestic Work and Construction) and extent
(Full time, Part time/Regular and Seasonal) of child labor in the municipality of
Panit-an, Capiz.
Since the age of the child labor is under 17 years old and below, the
respondents possibly have more likely a lower level of educational attainment, and
would result to work with young age and low-paying jobs to provide the daily basic
needs of their family. Based from the schematic diagram below, as to the nature of
works, maybe males are doing fishing and construction works while females are
doing domestic and agricultural works. Maybe respondents with lower educational
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status are more likely working in agricultural, fishing and construction works while
respondents who are still studying may be doing domestic works. Possibly, female
respondents works part time/regular while males are working full time or seasonal.
The income of the family and the number of household members could be the
reason of the respondents who are engaging in work at the young age. Perhaps,
respondents with parents with regular occupation and higher educational
attainment may work part time or seasonal. There are also possibility that the
eldest or the 1st child in terms of birth order is the one engaging in child labor
compared to the youngest child.
The number of household members may affect the state of life of the
family. The larger the family members, the larger the basic needs to provide.
Possibly, the family that has large number of household may work full time or part
time/regular for the reason that it is harder to provide the basic needs of the family,
it could be also possible that the eldest child is working to suffice the needs of the
family. Poor family usually have larger household members, the reason why
children sacrifices their rights in order to help their family provide for their basic
needs.
The possible relationship among the variables is summarized by the
following schematic diagram:
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Independent Variables
Dependent Variables
Personal Profile
-Age
-Gender
-Religion
-Birth order
-Educational attainment
-School status
Forms of child labor
-Agriculture
-Fishing
-Domestic Work
-Construction
-Others
Household Profile
-Monthly family income
-Parent’s Education
-Parent’s occupation
-Family size
Extent of child
labor
-Full time
-Part time/Regular
-Seasonal
-Others
Reasons
for working
Work
perception
Future
plan
Figure 1. Schematic Diagram
Operational Definition of the Variables
Socio-Demographic Profile
Age
- in this study, this refers to the length of time or years that the
respondents existed.
Gender- refers to the dichotomy of respondents whether male or female.
Religion
- This refers to the set of beliefs or faith and worship of the
respondent such as Roman Catholic, or Non-Catholic (Protestant, Iglesia ni Kristo,
Seventh-Day Adventist, Animistic, Atheist or Others).
Family Income - this refers to the total monetary payment received by the
members of the household of the respondents every month.
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Educational attainment – in this study, it refers to the highest degree of
education or the highest level of schooling that the respondent has reached. It
could be no formal education, elementary, high school, vocational, or college.
Occupation - a person's usual or principal work or business. In this study, it
refers to a major source of income or means of earning a living.
Family size – this refers to the actual number of household members of the
respondents.
Parent’s Education- in this study, it refers to the highest educational status
of the parents of the respondents.
In School Status- in this study, it refers whether the child is still attending in
school or out of school.
Forms of Child Labor
Agriculture- it is defined as the science or practice of farming, including
cultivation of the soil for the growing of crops and the rearing of animals to provide
food, wool, and other products.
In this study, it refers to the respondents who works on a farm, either
irrigate farm soil, maintain ditches or pipes and pumps, operate and services farm
and machinery and tools, spray fertilizer or pesticide solutions to control insects,
fungi and weeds, move shrubs, plants and trees with wheel barrows or tractors,
transporting and planting, weeding, harvesting, applying fertilizers, etc.
Fishing- it is defined as the work or the activity of trying to catch fish, either
for food, recreational or making money.
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In this study, it refers to the source of income of the respondents in either
on board activities such as diving for fish on free snagged nets, draining boats,
handling and repairing nets, herding fish into nets, and crewing on fishing vessels,
and/or on shore activities such as guarding fishing in docks, loading and unloading
sorting fish, cleaning and salting fish, smoking and drying fish, fish marketing,
harvesting shellfish, and sorting.
Domestic works- it is defined as the work done in a home or relating to the
running of a home or the family relations.
In this study, it refers to a person who is paid to help with menial task such
as cleaning or someone who works in a house, by either house keeper, baby
sitter, cook, laundry and ironing, gardener, house boy, maid, kitchen maid,
grounds keeper, etc.
Construction- it is defined as the work of building or making something,
especially buildings, bridges, etc.
In this study, it refers to the respondents working in the physical
construction and uses tools such as hammer, saw, shovel, etc. and sometimes
referred to as “hard hat workers”.
Extent of Child Labor
Full time - is employment in which a person works a minimum number of
hours defined as such by their employer. A worker is working in one employer
only.
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Part time/Regular - is a form of employment that carries fewer hours per
week than a full-time job. They work in shifts. The shifts are often rotational.
Workers are considered to be part-time if they commonly work fewer than 30
hours per week. There are many reasons for working part-time, including the
desire to do so, having one's hours cut back by an employer, or being going to
school.
Seasonal - A seasonal worker is an employee who performs labor or
services on a seasonal basis. They are workers employed exclusively during holiday
seasons and during harvest or other specific seasons.
Significance of the Study
The result of the investigation would benefit the following sectors:
Children. As the respondents of the study, results of the investigation will be
helpful for them to understand how child labor can affect their physical, moral,
social and mental health development. The study could also give them idea and
knowledge about their rights as a child.
Parents. Results of the study will be beneficial for them to know the effects of
child labor in the whole being of their children and for them to realize the rights of
children.
Community. Results of the study will be helpful to the community to realize that
children who are in minor age were not necessary to have a job. The study also
can make people more aware about all forms of child labor and its effects with
children’s future.
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Local Government Unit. This would help the LGU to acknowledge the rights of
children and to implement/formulate appropriate programs or intervention to
minimize this cases in our locality.
Policy Makers. This study will provide ideas on how to strengthen or improve
the programs of Local Government Unit related or addressing to child labor which
is also one of the problems in our locality.
Future Researchers. Results of the study will provide useful information for
them who would like to conduct research along this concern. Results will likewise
contribute to the body of research literature beneficial to future researchers who
are interested to conduct similar investigations.
Scope and Limitations
The purpose of the study is to determine the forms and extent of child labor
among children aging 18 years old and below in the Municipality of Panit-an,
Capiz. The study will be conducted to address a specific help that is needed by the
child labor victims.
The research design that will be using in the study will be descriptive
survey research design, specifically the one-shot survey or post-test only design. It
will survey about the forms and extent of child labor in the Municipality of Panit-an,
Capiz. The researcher will use an interview schedule to gather data needed in the
study.
Data in the study will be obtain through researcher’s made questionnaires
from 193 respondents that was divided into three ( 3 ) parts. The first part will
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focus on the personal and household profiles of the respondents, the second part
will deal with the forms of child labor and the third part will be on the extent of child
labor.
The independent variables will be personal and household profiles of the
respondents while the dependent variables will be forms and extend of child labor.
The statistical tools in analyzing gathered data will include frequency count,
percentage and chi-square test.
This study will be limited only to children experiencing child labor in the
Municipality of Panit-an, Capiz.
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CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
Child Labor, Definition and Forms
The term “child labor” is often used to cover a multitude of situations: from
bonded labor to part-time work on the family farm. It is useful to clarify who classifies
as a “child” and what activities count as “labor”. Neither of these turns out to be
simple.
The International Labor Organization’s (ILO) Convention No. 138 specifies
15 years of age as the age at which a person, under normal circumstances, may
participate in economic activities. Most studies therefore define children as
individuals of less than 15 years of age. It is presumed that children of less than 5
years are unable to work productively and so statistics often show child labor for 514 year olds. However, in some cases individuals under the age of 18 years also
count as children and the ILO sets more specific thresholds for some types of work
e.g. light work from the age of 12 years is permissible in a developing country
context (IPEC, 2006 in Edmonds, 2010).
According to the ILO, child labor refers to a subset of children’s work
(sometimes called employment or economic activity) that is injurious, negative or
undesirable to children and should be targeted for elimination (ILO-IPEC, 2013).
Three international conventions – UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC),
ILO Convention No. 182 (Worst Forms) and ILO Convention No. 138 (Minimum Age)
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– provide the main legal standards. These form the basis for child labor legislation
enacted by signatory countries.
In sum, child labor as defined by the ILO comprises of: “(i) all children
between 5-11 years of age who are economically active, (ii) children between 12-14
years of age who work in an economic activity for 14 or more hours per week, and
(iii) children between 12-17 years of age who work in an economic activity that is
classified as belonging to the “worst forms of child labor. The ‘worst forms of child
labor’ comprise of (i) slavery or economic activity in slave-like conditions, (ii)
prostitution or pornography, (iii) illicit activities such as drug production and
trafficking, and (iv) economic activities that are likely to harm the health, safety, or
morals of the child. The ILO classifies the first three types as ‘unconditional worst
forms of child labor’ (ILO-IPEC, 2013). In sum, the ILO-IPEC definition of child labor
excludes all children working legally in accordance with ILO Conventions Nos. 182
and 1386 (Diallo, et. al, 2012).
Moreover, UNICEF also collects data on child labor. They consider a child
aged 5-14 years old to be involved in child labor activities as: (a) children 5-11 years
of age that during the week preceding the survey did at least one hour of economic
activity or at least 28 hours of domestic work, and (b) children 12-14 years of age
that during the week preceding the survey did at least 14 hours of economic activity
or at least 42 hours of economic activity and domestic work combined
(https://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/stats_popup9.html).
ILO - through the International Program on the Elimination of Child Labor
(IPEC) – publishes the key global and regional statistics on child labor, and analysis
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of trends (http://www.ilo.org/ipec/lang--en/index.htm). The most recent LO statistics
are for 2012 (with a new set of estimates due in 2017). There is an ILO report
analyzing the 2008-2012 trend (Diallo et al, 2013) and another looking at the trends
2000-2012 (ILO-IPEC, 2013). These provide the main global statistics on child labor
in agriculture, for boys and girls 5-17 years old. UNICEF also provides global and
regional statistics covering 5-14 year olds – available as a web resource. The main
sources of statistical data on the prevalence of child labor are the survey instruments:
ILO SIMPOC12, UNICEF MICS13 and World Banks’ LSMS14, as well as other
national surveys.
Child labor is a pervasive problem throughout the world, especially in
developing countries. Africa and Asia together account for over 90 percent of total
child employment. Child labor is especially prevalent in rural areas where the
capacity to enforce minimum age requirements for schooling and work is lacking.
Children work fora variety of reasons, the most important being poverty and the
induced pressure upon them to escape from this plight. Though children are not well
paid, they still serve as major contributors to family income in developing countries.
Schooling problems also contribute to child labor, whether it be the inaccessibility of
schools or the lack of quality education which spurs parents to enter their children
in more profitable pursuits. Traditional factors such as rigid cultural and social roles
in certain countries further limit educational attainment and increase child labor
(Patrinos, 2014).
Working children are the objects of extreme exploitation in terms of toiling for
long hours for minimal pay. Their work conditions are especially severe, often not
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providing the stimulation for proper physical and mental development. Many of these
children endure lives of pure deprivation. However, there are problems with the
intuitive solution of immediately abolishing child labor to prevent such abuse. First,
there is no international agreement defining child labor, making it hard to isolate
cases of abuse, let alone abolish them. Second, many children may have to work in
order to attend school so abolishing child labor may only hinder their education. Any
plan of abolishment depends on schooling. The state could help by making it
worthwhile for a child to attend school, whether it be by providing students with
nutritional supplements or increasing the quality and usefulness of obtaining an
education. There must be an economic change in the condition of a struggling family
to free a child from the responsibility of working. Family subsidies can help provide
this support (Patrinos, 2014).
The sheer scale of child labor is not widely recognized. Worldwide some 215
million children are involved in child labor. The incidence of child labor is highest in
sub-Saharan Africa, where one-quarter of 5-17 year old children are affected.
Around half of child laborers – 115 million children in total - are engaged in
hazardous employment. Many of these children are working in conditions that would
have shocked social reformers in nineteenth century Europe. Deprived of a nurturing
and protective environment, they are risking their health, losing their only opportunity
for an education, and suffering emotional stress and trauma, in order to generate
small amounts of income or to provide labor for their households (Brown, 2011).
Very young children figure prominently in the child labor work force. There
are 152 million child laborers aged less than 15 years old – one-third of them
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involved in hazardous labor; and 91 million aged less than 12. Once again, subSaharan Africa stands out as a cause of special concern. Around 13 per cent of the
region’s primary school age population are involved in hazardous work. Current
trends are a source of great concern. Child labor is falling, but overall numbers are
coming down far more slowly than might have been anticipated in the light of the
stronger economic growth performance of poor countries. On a business-as-usual
pathway we predict that there will be 170-190 million child laborers in 2020. The
data from sub-Saharan Africa is particularly worrying. With one quarter of the
region’s children already involved in child labor, labor market participation by
children has been rising. Our trend analysis suggests the number of child laborers
in sub-Saharan Africa could rise by around 15 million over the next decade, reaching
reach 65 million by 2020.
Child labor takes many forms. According to the Child Labor and Educational
Disadvantage – Breaking the Link, Building Opportunity Review (2011), agriculture
is by far the largest sector employing children, with unpaid family farm work
dominating. Some 60 million children are involved. Young girls who should be in
school are collecting water and firewood, or caring for siblings. In West Africa, an
estimated 2 million children are involved in cultivating cocoa, while some 400,000
children are working on India’s cotton seed farms.
Mining and quarrying is another magnet for child labor. In Mali, children as
young as six are involved in digging shafts for artisanal gold mining, working in
tunnels, hauling rock, and using toxic chemicals to separate gold and ore. From the
Philippines, across sub-Saharan Africa to Bolivia and Peru, as many as 2 million
24
children worldwide are working in small scale mines. Another 14 million child
laborers are involved in manufacturing, many of them working in small sweatshops,
home industries and brick kilns. On one estimate, around half of the workforce in
Afghanistan’s brick kilns is aged less than 14.
Domestic service is one of the least visible and most hazardous forms of child
labor. The International Labor Organization (ILO) estimates that nearly 30 per cent
of the 50-100 million people employed as domestic workers worldwide are children.
In countries as diverse as Indonesia, Morocco, India and Nigeria, it is not uncommon
for young girls to be working more than twelve hours a day for less than the minimum
wage. Many of these girls are facing acute risks. One survey in Bangladesh found
that almost 70 per cent of girls involved in domestic service experienced physical
abuse and systematic beatings.
While household poverty is the primary driver of child labor other forces are
also at play. The ILO estimates that around 5.7 million children are forced into
employment through bonded labor. On a conservative estimate, some 1.2 million
children are trafficked each year for forced labor. All too often, children drawn into
the world of work are drawn also into a world dominated by criminal networks.
Children in conflict-affected countries face distinctive problems. Many are forced
into child labor by poverty and the absence of educational opportunities. Others are
forcibly recruited into armed militia or workforces used to exploit natural resources.
Credible estimates put the number of child soldiers worldwide at between 250300,000 (Brown, 2011).
25
Child Work definition versus Child Labor
According to, Gil M. Datayan, Labor and Employment Officer, he expalined
Child work as simply helping in the household chores as a way of discipline or
training for the child, and under supervision of the parents or guardian. The
household chores are cleaning the house, dishwashing, and other household tasks
or family business where the child is not exposed to health hazards. Most
importantly, the child is provided with all the basic necessities in life such as food,
shelter, clothing and education. Furthermore, the child must be given opportunities
to play. Datayan emphasized that in child work, the child is not enslaved but only
trained and no provision of the law on child labor is violated (Beñas, 2018).
Dr. Alexander Gumabol, provincial head of the Department of Labor and
Employment (DOLE), explained the elements of child labor include the following;
the child is below 18 years of age, and his work poses health hazards, he works for
straight eight hours a day and most of all, he is deprived of the basic needs such as
food, shelter, clothing and education. "There is a big difference between child labor
and child work. Child Labor is characterized by an element of abuse and violation
of child rights while Child Work is necessary to teach a child to do some minor
household chores, without being posed to health hazards and all basic needs are
provided by the parents or guardians.”
Child Labor in Other Countries
Child labor has been a worldwide concern for many years with countries all
over the world reporting high statistics of cases in their respective places.
26
According to ILO-IPEC (2013), the largest absolute number of child laborers
is found in the Asia and the Pacific region (77.7 million) but Sub-Saharan Africa
(SSA) continues to be the region with the highest incidence of child labor (21.4 per
cent), and has 59 million child laborers. To put this another way, the risk of child
labor is highest for children in SSA, where one child in every five is in child labor.
There is some (older) regional data on the sectoral distribution of economically
active children across regions. Using survey data for 65 countries from 1993-2003,
Fares and Raju (2007) find that SSA and Middle East and North Africa have the
largest shares of economically active 7-14 year old children employed in agriculture
(87.6 and 75.2 per cent, respectively).
Here is a summary of further regional information on child labor in general
and child employment in the agriculture sectors. Much of the information is from
U.S. DOL and UCW regional reports (UCW, 2014).

Middle East and North Africa: the 9.2 million child laborers are
engaged primarily in agriculture, domestic work and street work (U.S.
DOL, 2016a: 39). Child labor, while not high relative to the global
average, remains an important policy concern in the Arab states, with
the largest share of those in child labor found in agriculture (UCW,
2014). The share of children (5-14 years old) working in agriculture
are: Yemen (70 percent), Iraq (63 percent) and Jordan (40.5 per cent).

Europe and Central Asia: Regional statistics on child labor do not exist
for Europe and Eurasia but there is child labor, predominantly in
agriculture and street work (U.S. DOL, 2016). ILO (2010) highlights
27
areas where child labor is still endemic – such as Central Asia and in
some parts of the Caucasus. There are concerns about the impact of
migration, trafficking and the economic crisis, as well as the continued
social exclusion of indigenous minority groups, such as the Roma and
Sinti peoples.

South Asia: “South Asia is home to the greatest numbers of child
laborers”. … “In sheer numbers, India and Pakistan have by far the
largest out-of-school child population in the world” (ILO, 2010). There
are 16.7 million child laborers aged 5-17 years in South Asia,
according to conservative estimates (UCW-ILO report by Khan and
Lyon, 2015). In absolute terms, child labor for the entire 5-17 years
age range is highest in India (5.8 million), followed by Bangladesh (5.0
million), Pakistan (3.4 million) and Nepal (2.0 million). In relative terms
a child in Nepal faces the highest risk of being in child labor with over
one-quarter (26 per cent) of all 5-17 year-olds in child labor (compared
with 15 percent in Bhutan, and 12 percent each in Bangladesh and
Pakistan). Agriculture absorbs the highest percentage of children (714 year olds) in employment in every South Asian37 country for which
data is available, from 46 percent in Bangladesh to 94 percent in
Nepal.

East and South-East Asia: Child labor rate in this region stands at
around six percent for 5-14 year-olds and eight percent for 5-17 year
olds, slightly lower than the rates for the Asia and Pacific Region and
28
the world averages (UCW, 2015). There is considerable variation by
country: child labor is most common in Vietnam, where it affects
almost 14% of all 5-17 year-olds, followed by Cambodia (13.3%). In
absolute terms, Indonesia host to by far the largest number of child
laborers in the 5-17 years age range (3.1 million), followed by Vietnam
(2.5 million), Philippines (2.5 million) and Cambodia (0.5 million). The
agriculture sector accounts for by far the largest share of children’s
employment (5-14 year olds) (for example, 98 percent in Timor-Leste
and 95 percent in Lao DPR).

Latin America and Caribbean: 12.5 million 5-17 year old child laborers
are primarily engaged in agriculture and street work (U.S. DOL, 2016).
A 2006 UCW report finds that farm work accounts for at least two of
every three working 5-14 year old boys in all countries except
Venezuela. 5-14 year old girls are also concentrated primarily in the
agriculture sector in Bolivia and Ecuador but elsewhere their economic
activity appears mixed. ILO (2010) highlights that while the Americas
as a region has had the most significant reduction of child labor during
the last decade, indigenous children disproportionately miss out on
education and are found in some of the worst forms of child labor in
mining, agriculture and other sectors.

Sub-Saharan Africa: ILO finds that “Although the decline in child labor
during 2008-2012 offers some cause for optimism, Sub-Saharan
Africa is still the region where children face by far the highest risk of
29
child labor and also the region where progress has been slowest and
least consistent” (http://ilo.org/ipec/Regionsandcountries/Africa/lang-en/index.htm). The 59 million children engaged in child labor
(according to ILO statistics) work largely in agriculture, mining and
domestic service (U.S. DOL, 2016). Maplecroft’s Child Labor Index
2014 reported that “child labor risks are also increasing in SubSaharan Africa, which hosts 43 (over 50 per cent) of the ‘extreme risk’
countries in the Child Labor Index.
o Eastern and Southern Africa Region: High levels of economic
activity among 7- 14 year olds across the region, but particularly
high in Ethiopia, Somalia and Zambia (UNESCO & UNICEF,
2013).
o Ethiopia, Niger, Nigeria and Tanzania: Children’s employment
is overwhelmingly agricultural for both the 5-14 and 15-17 years
age ranges and for both boys and girls in all four countries
(Dachille, et al, 2015).
o
Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS):
Child labor rates (for 5-14 year olds) are highest in Guinea
Bissau (39 percent), Togo (38 percent), Burkina Faso (36
percent) (UCW, 2014). When expressed in absolute terms,
Nigeria is host to by far the largest number of child laborers (514 year olds) (10.5 million), followed by Ghana (2.1 million),
Niger (1.9 million) and Burkina Faso (1.8 million). The
30
agriculture sector accounts for at least two of every three
children (5-14 years old) in employment in all countries in the
region.
o East and West Africa: Maplecroft finds child labor risks
increasing in some regions, e.g. Tanzania and Kenya in the
East and Ghana and Mali in the West.
There are findings on the country prevalence of child labor generally, which
are also pertinent for understanding trends of child labor in agriculture:

The prevalence of child labor varies widely by country (Ortiz-Ospina
and Roser, 2016). For example, the share of children in employment
(here defined in terms of being economically active for one hour a
week) was fifteen times larger in Uganda than in Turkey according to
2006 estimates (ibid.). See also the UCW regional studies for
ECOWAS and East and South East Asia which find that the average
child labor rate masks considerable variation across countries (UCW,
2014; UCW, 2015a).

While most countries exhibit a downward trend in child labor,
influencing global and regional averages, there are many lagging
countries where progress has stagnated or is even negative (UCW,
2010). Some Sub-Saharan African countries experienced significant
rises in child labor rates in recent years (UCW, 2010).

There are also important pockets of stagnated progress within many
countries. For example indigenous children and children affected by
31
HIV and/or AIDS often lag significantly behind national progress in
reducing child labor.

The problem of child labor in agriculture is not confined to developing
countries (ILO, 2010) highlights that child labor is found in agriculture
in OECD countries which have not ratified Convention No. 138 and in
some cases not prohibited hazardous work in the sector for children
under 18 as required by Convention No. 182.
Maplecroft’s 2014 Child Labor Index44 ranks the risk incidence of child labor
in individual countries (presented here with the caveat that the Index’s methodology
is unknown). Maplecroft’s ranking of 197 countries includes 83 countries rated
‘extreme risk,’ with Eritrea, Somalia, DR Congo, Myanmar, Sudan, Afghanistan,
Pakistan, Zimbabwe, Yemen and Burundi comprising the 10 countries where the
problem of child labor is greatest.
The rapid review of Carter and Roelen (2017) found some cross-country data
on the prevalence of children’s economic activity in agriculture. Using data from
2000-2001, Edmonds (2007) finds that for almost all of the 19 listed countries, a
majority of economically active children work in agriculture, forestry, or fishing. Using
data for 65 countries from 1993-2003, Fares and Raju (2007) find that the share of
economically active children in agriculture exceeds the respective shares in services
and manufacturing in all countries in their sample. UCW country and regional reports
also provide data on children’s economic activity by sector for individual countries.
Child Labor in the Philippines
32
Despite strong economic progress over the last several decades, one in five
Filipino families remain below the poverty line, and a 2011 study found 2.1 million
Filipino children were engaged in unlawful child labor. Sixty-two percent worked in
hazardous labor activities where chemical, physical, and biological hazards exist
(2011 Survey on Children 5 to 17 Years Old - Final Report, 2014).
The labor department has strengthened its commitment of achieving a childlabor free Philippines as it pushes for more inclusive and preventive interventions in
combatting child labor and its worst forms. Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said
DOLE has so far profiled 85,582 child laborers in 16 regions of which 18,651 were
referred to appropriate agencies for the provision of services and assistance needed
by the children and their families. According to Bello III, profiling of the child laborers
is the department’s strategic way of withdrawing children from child labor where they
must first assess their needs and refer these children and their families to
appropriate agencies and organizations for the provision of necessary assistance to
remove them from child labor.
Apart from the nationwide profiling, DOLE has also provided livelihood
assistance in form of Negokart and starter kits to parents of child laborers to enable
their families to start their livelihood as a preventive measure against child labor.
Also, it has partnered with the Technical Education and Skills Development
Authority and Industrial Tripartite Councils for the provision of skills training to former
child laborers to help them land decent employment. These initiatives of the labor
department are aligned with the Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022, which
targets to reduce the cases of child labor by 30 percent or 630,000 from the
33
estimated 2.1 million child laborers nationwide (https://www.dole.gov.ph/news/phbolsters-fight-against-child-labor/).
In the Philippines, child labor is defined in Republic Act No.7658 as “illegal
employment of children below the age of fifteen [years], where they are not directly
under the sole responsibility of their parents or legal guardian, or the latter employs
other workers apart from their children, who are not members of their families, or
their work endangers their life, safety, health and morals or impairs their normal
development including schooling. It also includes the situation of children below the
age of eighteen [years] who are employed in hazardous occupations.” The definition
is consistent with the Philippine definition of the child (a person below eighteen years
of age) and the internationally accepted definition of child labor (Alonzo and Edillon,
retrieved 2020).
According to the article published in The Diplomat by Palatino (2015), child
labor exploitation is worsening in the Philippines. In 2011, the Philippine National
Statistics Office reported that there were 5.5 million working children in the country,
2.9 million of whom were working in hazardous industries such as mines and
plantations. The agency added that 900,000 children have stopped schooling in
order to work. The following year, the Center for Trade Union and Human Rights
(CTUHR) released a survey that showed that one out of four workers in palm oil
plantations in northeast Mindanao region were children below 18 years old.
The Ecumenical Institute for Labor Education Research (EILER) published a
baseline study which confirmed the prevalence of child labor in mines and
plantations in various parts of the country. In plantation communities, about 22.5
34
percent of households have child workers. In mining towns, child labor incidence
was 14 percent. The group noted that the youngest worker interviewed in the study
was five years old, although the common age of child workers was 12. The group
learned that 76 percent of child laborers have stopped attending school. Most child
laborers were working for 10 hours a day, or 13 to 16 hours a day in some extreme
cases. Also, child laborers in oil palm fields often serve as fruiters, harvesters,
haulers, loaders, and uprooters. Meanwhile, child laborers in sugarcane estates
work in weeding, harvesting and fetching of water. Banana plantation workers are
assigned in bagging and de-leafing duties. Outside banana plantations younger
children are involved as banana peelers for rejected bananas which will be dried
and processed as animal feeds. Girls in mines work in gold panning or provide
services
to
miners
such
as
doing
their
laundry
or
cooking
meals
(https://thediplomat.com/2015/02/rising-child-labor-abuse-in-the-philippines/).
EILER observed that child workers are exposed to extreme weather
conditions, long working hours, and harsh environments while using substandard
tools and equipment. In plantations, trucks would pick children from their homes and
bring them to makeshift tents that are located in nearby provinces to stay and work
there from two weeks to one month without their parents. And since most plantations
use harmful agro-chemicals, the children are also directly exposed to these threats.
In mines, children are handling dangerous tools and are made to work without
personal protective equipment for long hours. They are also vulnerable to social
hazards like the use of illegal drugs inside the tunnels to keep them awake for hours.
In mines, child laborers usually fetch water, carry sacks of rocks, and load thick logs
35
that are used to support the underground tunnels, or become errand boys of regular
workers. They are also reserve workers or relievers whenever regular miners cannot
come to work (https://thediplomat.com/2015/02/rising-child-labor-abuse-in-thephilippines/).
With this, it is very clear that child labor in the Philippines is still rampant and
continues to affect an estimated 2.1 million children aged 5-17 years, about eight
percent of this age group, according to the results of the Philippines 2011 Survey
on Children (SOC, 2011). These numbers indicate clearly that the struggle against
child labor has not yet been won in the country, and that efforts in this regard need
to be intensified and accelerated in order that the goal of child labor elimination is
reached in the nearest possible future (Understanding Child Labor and Youth
Employment in The Philippines Country Report, 2015).
Philippine Laws and Regulations on Child Labor
The Philippines had taken serious effort in protecting children from being
engaged in different forms of child labor. Laws and regulations were implemented
and legalized in order to ensure that every Filipino child is protected by the country
including their rights and privileges. Provisions in some enacted laws in the country
are established for the protection of children’s rights.
Some important laws and
regulations on child labor in the Philippines are as follows:

Republic Act 10533. It an Act Enhancing the Philippine Basic Education
System by Strengthening Its Curriculum and Increasing the Number of Years
for Basic Education, Appropriating Funds Therefor and for Other Purposes,”
36
otherwise known as the “Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013. Section 7
of this act states that it shall be compulsory for every parent or guardian or
other persons having custody of a child to enroll such child in basic education,
irrespective of learning delivery modes and systems, until its completion, as
provided for by existing laws, rules and regulations.

Republic Act 9208. Also known as the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003,
institutes policies to eliminate and punish human trafficking, especially
women and children, establishing the necessary institutional mechanisms for
the protection and support of trafficked persons. It aims "to promote human
dignity, protect the people from any threat of violence and exploitation, and
mitigate pressures for involuntary migration and servitude of persons, not
only to support trafficked persons but more importantly, to ensure their
recovery, rehabilitation and reintegration into the mainstream of society. It
specifically criminalizes trafficking for the purposes of exploitation. The
punished overt acts include trafficking under the guise of arranged marriage,
adoption, sex tourism, prostitution, pornography, or the recruitment of
children into armed conflict. Trafficking of children is made a “qualified”
offense, and higher penalties of life imprisonment and a fine of 2 million to 5
million pesos (USD 36,085 to 90,212) are imposed (The Corpus Juris, 2016).

Republic Act 10821. Also known as the Children's Emergency Relief and
Protection Act of 2016, it mandates the provision of emergency relief and
protection for children before, during, and after disaster and other emergency
situations. It refers to situations when children are gravely threatened or
37
endangerd by circumstances that affect their survival and normal
development.The Act is guided by the principles of survival and development,
child participation, and consistency with the United Nations Convention on
the Rights of the Child, as well as the Children's Charter for Disaster Risk
Reduction, and the minimum standards for children in humanitarian action.
This Act sets the State of the Philippines responsible to establish and
implement a comprehensive strategic program of action to provide children,
pregnant and lactating mothers affected by disaster and other emergency
situations with the utmost support and assistance necessary for their
immediate
recovery
and
protection
(https://www.preventionweb.net/english/professional/policies/)

Republic Act 10364. Also known as the Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons
Act of 2012, it is the act expanding Republic Act No. 9208, entitled “an act to
institute policies to eliminate trafficking in persons especially women and
children, establishing the necessary institutional mechanisms for the
protection and support of trafficked persons, providing penalties for its
violations and for other purposes.

Republic Act 10361. Also known as the Batas Kasambahay of 2012, it is an
act instituting policies for the protection and welfare of domestic workers.
Section 16 of the act gives special provision for the protection of children
which states: It shall be unlawful to employ any person below fifteen (15)
years of age as a domestic worker. Employment of working children, as
defined under this Act, shall be subject to the provisions of Section 10 (A),
38
paragraph 2 of Section 12-A, paragraph 4 of Section 12-D, and Section 13 of
Republic Act No. 7610, as amended, otherwise known as the "Special
Protection of Children Against Child Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination
Act". The provision also iterates that working children shall be entitled to
minimum wage, and all benefits provided under the Act and any employer
who has been sentenced by a court of law of any offense against a working
child under the Act shall be meted out with a penalty one degree higher and
shall
be
prohibited
from
hiring
a
working
child
(https://lawphil.net/statutes/repacts/ra2013/ra_10361_2013.html).

Republic Act 9775. Also known as the Anti-Child Pornography Act of 2009 is
an act defining the crime of child pornography, prescribing penalties therefore
and for other purposes. It guarantees the fundamental rights of every child
from all forms of neglect, cruelty and other conditions prejudicial to his/her
development and protect every child from all forms of exploitation and abuse
including, but not limited to: (1) the use of a child in pornographic
performances and materials; and (2) the inducement or coercion of a child to
engage or be involved in pornography through whatever means.

Article 139 of the Labor Code; Section 16 of the Act Instituting Policies for
the Protection and Welfare of Domestic Workers which emphasizes the
Minimum Age for Work

Article 139 of the Labor Code which gives standards on Minimum Age for
Hazardous Work
39

Department Order 149 on Guidelines in Assessing and Determining
Hazardous Work in the Employment of Persons Below 18 Years of Age;
Department Order 149A on Guidelines in Assessing and Determining
Hazardous Work in the Employment of Persons Below 18 Years of Age;
Sections 12-D and 16 of the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse,
Exploitation, and Discrimination Act which identify the Hazardous
Occupations or Activities Prohibited for Children

Sections 4-5 of the Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act; Sections 12-D
and 16 of the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation, and
Discrimination Act which prohibits forced labor

Sections 12-D and 16 of the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse,
Exploitation, and Discrimination Act; Sections 4-5 of the Expanded AntiTrafficking in Persons Act which prohibits child trafficking.

Sections 12-D and 16 of the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse,
Exploitation, and Discrimination Act; Section 4 of the Anti-Child Pornography
Act; Section 4 of the Cybercrime Prevention Act which prohibits commercial
sexual exploitation of children

Sections 12-D and 16 of the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse,
Exploitation, and Discrimination Act; Sections 5 and 8 of the Comprehensive
Dangerous Drugs Act which prohibits using children in illicit activities

Section 4 of the Enhanced Basic Education Act which give mandate on
compulsory education age

Section 2 of the Philippine Constitution which legalizes free public education
40
Enforcement of Laws on Child Labor
The government has established institutional mechanisms for the
enforcement of laws and regulations on child labor. Some of the most notable
agencies responsible for child labor law enforcement in the Philippines are as
follows:

Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Bureau of Working
Conditions. Tasked to: enforce child labor laws; regularly train
inspectors and regional personnel; inspect establishments and
monitor compliance with labor laws in the formal sector and register
dole enforcement activities using the Labor Law Compliance System
Management Information System (U.S. Embassy- Manila. Reporting,
January 15, 2015)

Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). Tasked to:
habilitate and reintegrate child laborers; coordinate regional Special
Action Units, with at least none dedicated staff member per region to
conduct rescue operations for child laborers and cooperate with social
workers to manage ongoing cases and maintain 16 Crisis Intervention
Units and 30 residential facilities nationwide, as well as social media
accounts, to address cases of child abuse and support child abuse
victims, including children exploited in hazardous labor (Findings on
the Worst Forms of Child Labor, 2017).
41

Philippine National Police (PNP). Tasked to investigate and prosecute
cases related to the worst forms of child labor. In the case of the
Women and Children’s Protection Center, enforces laws on child
trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation of children; oversees
the Internet Crimes Against Children office within its Anti-Trafficking in
Persons Division, which aims to combat the online sexual exploitation
of children (Philippine National Police official. Interview with USDOL
official. July 17, 2017)

Rescue the Child Laborers Quick Action Teams (Sagip Batang
Manggagawa – SBM QAT). Tasked to lead the regional mechanism
for rescuing children who work in exploitative situations; detect,
monitor, and respond to incidents of child labor using a cooperative
and interagency approach and to conduct unannounced compliance
visits in video karaoke bars, massage parlors, sauna/ bath houses,
and
farms
when
a
child
labor
complaint
is
made
(http://www.bwsc.dole.gov.ph/images/InfoMaterials/SBM).

National Bureau of Investigation (NBI). Investigates and prosecute
child labor cases and operates a national Trafficking in Persons Task
Force, as well as a Task Force on the Protection of Children from
Exploitation and Abuse (U.S. Embassy- Manila official. E-mail
communication to USDOL official. March 13, 2014)

Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency. Enforces the Comprehensive
Dangerous Drugs Act; maintains a national hotline for reporting cases
42
of children used in illicit activities and coordinates with the DSWD to
assist during rescue operations. (U.S. Embassy- Manila. Reporting,
January 17, 2014)

National Telecommunications Commission. Enforces the Anti-Child
Pornography Law and coordinates with Internet Service Providers to
block
websites
containing
child
pornographic
material
(http://cnnphilippines.com/news/2017/01/16/government-blocksmajor-porn-websites.html)
Social Programs to Address Child Labor
The Philippine government had funded several social programs that aimed to
eradicate the cases of child labor in the Philippines. According to the 2017 Findings
on the Worst Forms of Child Labor in the Philippines by the Bureau of International
Labor Affairs, some major social programs initiated by the country are the following:

Child Labor Prevention and Elimination Program (Pantawid Pamilyang
Pilipino Program). DSWD program that provides conditional grants to
poor families with children to improve their access to health care,
adequate nutrition, and education; implements local awareness-raising
campaigns; institutes child labor-monitoring mechanisms; and requires
neighborhoods to develop child labor elimination plans. Covers 1,627
cities and municipalities in 79 provinces and all 17 regions. Program will
include a child labor module that will impart information on the effects of
43
child labor to project participants and the family’s role to combat child
labor.

Campaign for Child-Labor Free Barangays. DOLE program that aims to
eliminate child labor in villages by raising awareness of child labor and
human trafficking laws, and through government livelihood programs and
guidelines. In 2017, DOLE declared 6 additional neighborhoods child
labor free, bringing the total number to 343 since 2014. By 2016, DOLE
regional offices have certified 210 establishments as child labor free.

Livelihood for Parents of Child Laborers (Kabuhayan para sa Magulang
ng Batang Manggagawa). DOLE program that provides livelihood
assistance to parents, guardians or other family members of child laborers.
In 2017, 3,430 parents of child laborers received livelihood assistance.

Recovery and Reintegration Program for Trafficked Persons. DSWD and
IACAT program that provides recovery and reintegration services to
victims of human trafficking and raises awareness in vulnerable
communities. Includes the National Referral System, which strengthens
coordination among agencies providing services to human trafficking
victims through the use of standard referral and reporting forms. There
are 149 referral networks established in 16 regions.

USDOL-Funded Projects. USDOL projects in the Philippines that aim to
eliminate child labor in artisanal and small-scale gold mines, and its worst
forms, by improving the capacity of the national government, the
implementing the National Action Plan Against Child Labor, conducting
44
research and data collection, developing strategic policies, drafting
legislation, and supporting social services delivery for child domestic
workers. These projects include Country Level Engagement and
Assistance to Reduce Child Labor (CLEAR), implemented by the ILO in
at least 11 countries; Global Action Program (GAP) on Child Labor Issues,
implemented by the ILO in approximately 40 countries; Building a
Generation of Safe and Healthy Workers: Safe Youth @ Work
implemented by the ILO with the Philippines as one of the three pilot
countries; and “CARING Gold Mining Project,” Convening Stakeholders
to Develop and Implement Strategies to Reduce Child Labor and Improve
Working Conditions in Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining (ASGM)
(2015–2019), implemented by the ILO with the Philippines as one of the
two pilot countries. In 2017, the CARING Gold Mining Project began
implementing Strategic Helpdesks for Information, Education, Livelihoods
and other Development Interventions, which will allow for the collection of
child labor data.

Alternative Learning System Program. Department of Education program
that offers non-formal education to out-of-school children, including child
laborers and children displaced from military conflict, as well as
opportunities to attain a certificate of education equivalency. Has received
between $7-15 million and has benefited 500,000 children as of 2015.
45
Synthesis
Child labor is a wide spread problem globally. With a poverty as its leading
cause, children sacrifice their rights just to help their family provide for basic
needs. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, 2.1 million children are
engaging in child labor in the Philippines, and 6,728 of it came from Western
Visayas. Records from the Department of Labor and Employment, Capiz Field
Office shows that there are 1645 cases of child labor in the Province of Capiz and
193 recorded in the Municipaity of Panitan. Though the government exerted efforts
in implementing laws to protect rights of children but it is still obvious how
prevalence child labor is.
A child engaging in child labor may not know that they were abused as
working in young age and with not fully developed body, for the reason that the
goal of the child is to have nutritious food to eat three times a day. A child may
help their family look for food but it doesn’t mean that the child will sacrifice
everything just to provide the needs of the family because it is still the role of the
parents to provide everything for the family including sending their child in school.
46
CHAPTER III
METHODOLOGY
This chapter presents the research design, locale of the study, sampling
technique, instrumentation, data collection and analysis procedure.
Research Design
This study will employ a descriptive-correlational research design,
specifically the one-shot survey or post-test only design. As a survey research, it will
employ one-shot survey about the forms and extent of child labor in the Municipality
of Panit-an, Capiz through an interview schedule to gather data needed in the study.
As a correlational research, it will try to determine the correlation between personal
profiles and household profiles and extent of child labor.
Locale of the Study
This study will be conducted in all the barangays in the Municipality of Panitan, Capiz, one of the 16 Municipalities in the province of Capiz, known as the “Sea
Food capital of the Philippines” but the main source of livelihood in the Municipality
of Panit-an is farming.It was classified as a 3rd Class Municipality. It is located about
15 kilometers south of Roxas City. It is composed of 26 barangays and has a total
land area of 8,988 hectares wherein 6,022 hectares are devoted to agriculture which
is the main source of livelihood of 3,093 farmers. The agriculture industry yields
about 16,219 metric tons of clean rice annually, more than enough to feed its
constituents.
47
This study will focus on the different forms and extent of child labor. All the
26 barangays of the Municipality of Panit-an will be the source of data of the
researcher. The 26 barangays namely: Agbabadiang, Ambilay, Balatucan,
Banggaan, Cabugao, Cabangahan, Calaan, Intampilan, Cadio, Pob. Ilawod, Pob.
Ilaya, Timpas, Cogon, Agkilo, Conciencia, Enseñagan, Agloway, Tincupon,
Tinigban, Quios, Pasugue, Salocon, Tabuc Sur, Tabuc Norte, Bahit and Capagao.
The researcher will be looking for the child laborer in the different barangays for a
face-to-face interview with a consent from their parents or guardian.
Respondents of the Study
Based from the 2019 data of the Department of Labor and Employment
(DOLE), there were13, 775 victims of child labor in Western Visayas, 1,645 from the
province of Capiz and 193 is from the municipality of Panitan. Therefore, the
respondents of the study will be 129 randomly selected children aging 18 years old
and below who are working in the municipality of Panit-an, Capiz.
The sample size of 129 will be determined from the population of 193 children
who were identified victim of child labor in the municipality of Panitan, Capiz using
Cochran’s formula set at 0.05 margin of error. Simple random sampling technique
will be used to select the participants.
Data Collection Instrument
In order for the researcher to gather relevant data for the study, an interview
schedule will be prepared and used by the researcher. The interview schedule will
be divided into three (3) parts. The first part will focus on the personal and household
48
profiles of the respondents, the second part will deal with the forms of child labor
and the third part will be on the extent of child labor.
Data Gathering Procedure
Before the actual data gathering, the researchers will first send a letter
requesting permission from the different Barangay Captains. List of respondents will
be obtained from the Department of Labor and Employment, Capiz Field Office.
Permission will be sought from the Municipal Social Welfare Office to conduct the
study. Upon approval of the letter request, data pertinent to the study will be obtain
from the children that undergo child labor at the age of 10 – 17 with the presence of
their guardians. The respondents and their respective parents/guardians will be
informed prior to the conduct of the interview. The respondents are given autonomy
to refuse the researcher not to participate in the study. It will be explained to the
respondents and their respective parents/guardian that participation is voluntary in
nature. Personal interview will be made by the researcher based on the content of
the interview schedule. Considering the nature of the study and the status of the
study subjects who were not yet of the legal age, an informed consent will be
obtained for ethical reasons. The respondents will also be informed of all procedures,
potential risks, and benefits that the research would bring. The purpose and nature
of the study and how the data will be collected will be explained to both the
respondent and responsible member of the family. The respondent will be requested
to sign the consent form provided by the researcher that the respondent allows the
researcher to use his/her data for survey purposes. All personal information
49
extracted from the respondents will be made confidential and will not be disclosed
to public at all conditions. The researcher will ensure that the respondents may
choose not to disclose his or her identity to anyone that all of the information and
data that could be gathered from the respondents could not in any way identify
him/her to other respondents. To ensure that the research will not cause
inconvenience or physical, emotional, and psychological harm, the respondents will
be given pre-activity orientation about the purpose of the study to increase their
understanding and remove possible deception. The respondents will also undergo
debriefing after the gathering of data to minimize any stress or inconvenience
affected by the study.
Since the interview will be done face to face, minimum health protocols such
as wearing of face mask, face shields, alcohol and physical distancing will be
observed all throughout the duration of the interview.
After data gathering, results will be tabulated and subject to statistical analysis.
Data Processing and Analysis
After data gathering, data will be process and subject to statistical analysis
using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The statistical tools in
analyzing gathered data will include frequency count, percentage and mean. This
will be used to describe the personal and household profiles of the respondents and
the different forms and extent of child labor.
50
The chi-square test will be used in the analysis of the relationships of the
socio-demographic characteristics of the respondent and the forms and extent of
child labor.
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World
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Retrieved
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Amalla, C. & Hernaez, R. (2017) Prevalence of Child Labor in selected Barangay’s
of Pilar
Capiz: A Survey, March 2017
Amolar, R., Cala-or, R., Dequia, J., & Fano, H. (2000). A Descriptive Study
of Children Involved in Pyrotechnic Making, March 2000
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Bhukuth, A. (2008). Defining Child Labor: A Controversial Debate. Develoment in
Practice. 18: 385-394
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Bureau of International Labor Affairs (2002). 2001 Findings on the worst forms
of Child Labor- Philippines. United States Department Labor
Department of Labor and Employment, Capiz Field Office
Edmonds, E. (2007) Discussion Paper No. 2606 Child Labor, 8-9, 14-22
February 2007
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https://www.ilo.org/moscow/areas-of-work/childlabour/WCMS_248984/lang-en/index.htm. Archived from the original on 27 September 2017. Retrieved
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December 2019.
Ira Pedrasa (26 June 2012). "3 million Filipino kids in hazardous labor – ILO". ABSCBNnews.com. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
Jha. M. (2009). Child Workers in India: Context and Complexities. Human Rights
Review. 10: 205-218
Kuman, S. (2010). Child Labor: A Menace to Society. International Journal and
Allied
Sciences. 2:125-134
Kyodo, Bernal, Thippeswamy, (2015). Legal Protection of Child Domestic Workers
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Montgomery, K. M., (2016). Does Child Labor have a Negative Impact on Child
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17
years old is estimated at 5.5 million (Preliminary Results of the 2011 Survey
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Passion, P. (2017). Government ILO vow to free 1 million kids from child
labor; 19 Sept 2017, 152 million children worldwide still engaged in laborILO
https://www.rappler.com/nation/182666-child-labor-global-estimate-iloreport
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INTERVENTIONS* HCOWP 56”. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
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53
Forms and Extent of Child Labor in the Municipality of Panit-an, Capiz
INTERVIEW SCHEDULE
Part 1. Personal and Household Profile of the respondents
Direction: Please fill up or check (/) the needed information.
Personal Profile
Name: (Optional)
________________
Adress: _______________________________________________
Age:
______
Gender:
(
) Male (
)
Female
Religion:
( ) Roman Catholic ( ) Iglesia Ni Cristo
( ) Baptist
( ) Apostolic
Others: ____________________
Birth Order:
( ) First
( ) Middle
( ) Last
Educational Attainment
( ) elementary level
graduate
( ) elementary graduate
College Level
( ) High school level
School Status:
(
)
High
school
(
Others: ____________________
)
54
( ) In School
( ) Out of School
___________________
(
Household Profile
Father: Education
_______
Occupation:
Mother: Education
_______
Occupation:
)
Others:
Family Size: ______________________________
Monthly Family Income: PHP___________________
Part II.
(
Different Forms of Child Labor
A. In what specific area are you presently working?
) Agriculture
( ) Fishing
(
) Domestic Work
( ) Construction
Others: (specify) ____________________________
B. What is the specific nature of your work?
AGRICULTURE
( ) irrigate farm soil
( ) maintain ditches or pipes and pumps
( ) operate and services farm and machinery and tools
( ) spray fertilizer or pesticide solutions to control insects, fungi and weeds
( ) move shrubs, plants and trees with wheel barrows or tractors
( ) transporting and planting
( ) weeding
( ) harvesting
( ) applying fertilizers
( ) others: (specify) __________________
FISHING
On board
( ) diving for fish on free snagged nets
( ) draining boats
( ) handling and repairing nets
( ) herding fish into nets
55
( ) crewing on fishing vessels
On shore
( ) guarding fishing in docks
( ) loading and unloading sorting fish
( ) cleaning and salting fish
( ) smoking and drying fish
( ) fish marketing
( ) harvesting shellfish
( ) sorting
( ) others: (specify) __________________
DOMESTIC WORK
( ) house keeper
( ) baby sitter
( ) cooking
( ) care for children
( ) laundry and ironing
( ) gardener
( ) house boy
( ) maid
( ) kitchen maid
( ) grounds keeper
( ) others: (specify) __________________
CONSTRUCTION
( ) carpentry
( ) scaffold/construction concrete works
( ) stone work
( ) waste facilities work
( ) others: (specify) __________________
III. EXTENT OF WORK
.A. How would you classify the extent of your work?
( ) Full Time
( ) Part Time/Regular
56
( ) Seasonal
IV. OTHER INFORMATION
A. While working in your present job, how are the following Basic Needs arranged:
1. Shelter
( ) free home
( ) renting
( ) others: (specify) __________________
2. Clothing
( ) uniform
( ) clothing allowance
( ) others: (specify) __________________
3. Foods
( ) free foods
( ) food allowance
( ) others: (specify) __________________
4. Others: _________________________
B. What is your major reason for working?
C. Do you like working as a child?
(
) YES
(
) NO,. WHY?
57
D. What is your Future Plan? (i.e. Do you want to continue working or do other
things?)