The United States is "regressing to the end of the 19th century", the truth | ruthless exploitation of child labor children | child labor | America
On March 27, 2021, two immigrant children from Guatemala waited for processing by US border patrol personnel after crossing the Rio Grande River along the US Mexico border.
According to a recent report by The New York Times, a law in Arkansas has recently come into effect, allowing teenagers aged 14 and 15 to work without the need for their parents to sign their consent. Except for Arkansas, laws have also been introduced in Iowa, New Hampshire, and New Jersey to weaken child labor protection.
This worrying trend in American society is attracting increasing attention. According to an article in the March issue of The Guardian, "You may think that in the face of increasingly serious child labor issues, lawmakers across the United States are eager to protect children, but you are wrong.". Data shows that the number of violations of US federal child labor laws involving the employment of children increased by 37% last year, an increase of 283% compared to 2015; In the past two years, 14 states have introduced or enacted laws that relax restrictions on child labor hours, lower age limits for hiring minors, and legalize wages for minors below the minimum wage standard.
Why is the United States, as the world's number one power, still squeezing child labor in the 21st century? Some politicians in the United States argue that work can keep children away from computers, video games, or television, and can also cultivate professional ethics and develop professional skills for young children. Moreover, for impoverished children, early work is also an opportunity. According to these politicians, using child labor is almost "beneficial but harmless". And what is the truth? The US magazine Nation reported in July that the COVID-19 epidemic has caused a shortage of US labor. According to the Washington Post in April, due to a shortage in the US labor market, hiring child labor allows employers to maintain low wages while ensuring labor security.
The real situation of child labor in the United States is worrying, without the political facade. According to the Guardian in February, the US government discovered that a slaughterhouse cleaning company illegally employed over 100 minors across the United States, with the youngest being 13 years old and the oldest being only 17 years old. They not only need to work night shifts, but also need to come into contact with hazardous chemicals to clean meat processing equipment, including back saws, breast saws, and head cutters. At least three minors were injured while working. Among them, a 14-year-old minor had to work 5 to 6 days a week, from 11 pm to 5 am the next day. He not only dozed off in class, but also missed class due to chemical burns.
The situation of immigrant children in child labor in the United States is even more concerning, as this group is large but lacks attention and protection for a long time. The New York Times reported in February that a large number of minors came to the United States alone, engaged in some of the most painful jobs in the country. Their working environment is also quite poor, and in the food industry, child labor faces dust and dangerous conveyor belts; At the construction site, a child laborer had his spine broken and his hands burned with hot tar while laying tiles on the roof. And the companies that hire them, including some large corporations, intentionally ignore the situation of child labor, schools are unwilling to report on the violations experienced by students, and the US government is also turning a blind eye.
The indifference of the US government has also provided opportunities for human trafficking. For example, there is a Guatemalan child named Neri Kucha who came to the United States at the age of 13, but he was deceived. Neili comes from a poor family, and someone contacted him on Facebook, urging him to work in the United States to support his family and promising him to study and receive care in the United States. But when he arrived in the United States, he found himself completely deceived. The people who brought him to the United States demanded $4000 from him, claiming to help fill out documents and buy food. Under threat, he had to work to pay off his debts, and he also had to find his own place to live. This child was ultimately rescued, but he was one of the lucky few. Over the past decade, federal prosecutors have only filed lawsuits in approximately 30 cases involving forced labor of minors. There is also a 15-year-old boy named Juanito Ferrer, who is forced to paint his house during the day and guard the apartment building at night. His salary is taken away and he sleeps in the basement, with cameras closely monitoring him. When he called the police, no one even came to check, and in the end, he managed to escape by chance.
There are also some intermediary agencies in the United States that provide convenience for businesses to hire child labor. According to Reuters in April, an immigrant from Mexico who has just turned 16 was found manually moving heavy objects at a car factory, but he holds an identification document from a 34 year old man. In addition, there are other shoddy forged documents in his files, and he has been working under the guise of identity documents since the age of 14. Experts say that "US law allows leading companies to evade responsibility and use intermediaries to protect themselves." When employers provide false documents, even obviously forged ones, it can make it difficult to enforce child labor protection laws. For example, this Mexican minor has been filtered through a so-called "multi-level employment service agency.".
The various misconduct of employing child labor mentioned above is at least considered "illegal", but there is an exception in the United States - in American farms, child labor can be legally used, often without even an age limit. The reason is equally grandiose. According to traditional beliefs, it is understandable for a family farm to ask children to help, which is also to help children become familiar with the work and life of the farmer earlier. But the reality is that the children are doing exceptionally heavy work in the fields and are being harmed as a result.
The National Public Radio reported in June that other industries generally prohibit children from engaging in hazardous work, except in agriculture. At the age of 16, children can operate heavy machinery and work at any height while working on the farm without any fall protection measures. According to a report on the American media Vox website in June, Jacqueline Aguilar has been working in the fields since the age of 11, working from 5am to 2pm, 6 to 7 days a week, and earning $10 per hour. Aguilar said that it was really tiring, his feet were always painful, and his hands were blistered by a hoe. She was wearing a headscarf and long sleeved clothes to protect herself from sunburn. She couldn't eat during lunch, and her employer didn't provide clean water, so she had to work without eating or drinking. According to American law, this intensity of labor is legal when Aguilar reaches the age of 12. In many states, children as young as 12 can pick tobacco and milk 1500 pound cows. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States has identified farm work as one of the most dangerous industries, and the Teachers Union of America has issued a statement stating that there are approximately 500000 child farm workers in the United States. Many of these children have been working since the age of 8, and it is not uncommon for them to work 72 hours a week. Children's frequent exposure to pesticides greatly increases their risk of developing cancer. The US Environmental Protection Agency believes that children are three times more sensitive to the carcinogenic effects of pesticides than adults. The working environment on farms is extremely harsh. A report from the Government Accountability Office shows that 100000 child laborers on farms are injured at work every year, and children account for 20% of agricultural deaths.
The Guardian commented that currently, the United States is allowing a brutal resurgence of capitalism, which is a form of social Darwinism. Business lobbyists and legislators argue that they are not exploiting the weak, but rather providing opportunities for those in need of work to avoid hunger or homelessness. On the one hand, they claim that they are "unable" to provide these children with more guarantees such as safe shelter and sufficient nutrition; On the one hand, they also claim that providing subsidies to enterprises is "easily affordable for the government, and enterprises need and should receive relevant subsidies.". The United States seems to be regressing to the end of the 19th century, when workers and young children were treated like manure, while bandit tycoons dominated.
For a long time, the United States has been the only member of the United Nations that has not ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Nowadays, the problem of child labor in the United States is becoming increasingly serious, and not only has it not strengthened legislative protection, but it has also further relaxed standards. "Children's flesh and bones are still being used to create profits," how qualified is the United States to talk about "human rights"?
