Week of November 16-November 20: CWI

Monday-

ISIS and Paris Attacks:

3 teams of terrorists staged terrorist attacks at 6 locations in Paris
129 killed
352 injured (out of those, 99 in critical condition)
7 out of the 8 terrorists were killed
Belgium per capita (per 1000 people) has had the most people go fight for ISIS
104 people have been put on house arrest
150 police raids in France
The attackers have been identified
A worldwide manhunt is on for a Belgium man who is said to have been a part of the attacks
Ground troops may be the best way to fight back against ISIS
The reason they are attacking us is because our military is in their territory
Russia invades Afghanistan in 1979
America sends supplies to the Mujahideen forces (now Al-Qaeda)
Russia left in 1987
In 1990, they turned on us and attacked America
ISIS started as part of Al-Qaeda in Iraq
Al-Qaeda kicked them out for being too radical
They then became ISIS

Child Labor

Deprives a child from childhood, potential, and dignity and harmful to their mental and physical development
Little time for play and education
215 million children working full time
Why is there child labor?
- Pledged by parents payment for debt
- Kidnapped and lured away from families
- Imprisoned- sweatshops
- Domestic service- given or sold to another family
Conditions in child labor
- Working conditions are overcrowded, little care, poor nutrition, little pay, hazardous environments
Different types of child labor
- Slavery
- drug trafficking
- prostitution
- armed conflict
- agriculture
- machinery
- mining
The effects of child labor
- Verbal and physical abuse
- Emotionally traumatized
Sweatshops
- Factory where employed workers with extremely low wages
- work long hours
- Poor conditions
- Many children are employed
- Randomly exposed to verbal and physical abuse
- US government definition- factories where 2 or more labor laws are violated
- People who work in sweatshops are trapped there because they never earn enough to cover their daily expenses
Why do children work in sweatshops?
- Families make them to help pay off debt
- Many are forced
- Been abducted
- many girls are wanted for carpet industry because of their small fast working fingers
Conditions for children in sweatshops
- Denied education and normal childhood
- Confined
- Beaten
- Denies the right to leave and go home to their families
Products made in sweatshops
- sneakers
- rugs
- carpets
- toys
- bananas
- coffee
- chocolate
- clothing
Monitoring Problems
- Monitors call ahead of time to arrange visits
- Gives time for factory to clean o and get ready
- gets rid of child workers
- They teach the workers how to act and what to say when the monitor comes
The 10 Worst Countries
- 10. Ethiopia
  - 60% of children work for $1 a month or less
- 9. Pakistan
  - Children are abducted, rented, bought, and sold
  - Nike has gotten into trouble for using Pakistani children to produce soccer balls
- 8. Burundi-
  - 25% of children from 4-15 are involved in child labor, slavery, heavy manual work, mining, brick making
- 7. Afghanistan
  - 30% of kids work
  - cement processing
  - textile processing
  - food processing
- 6. Zimbabwe
  - kids work in gold, diamond, and chrome mines
  - "Learn As You Earn"- encourages child labor
  - want to replace formal education with child labor
- 5. Democratic Republic of Congo
  - Mined the iron that was used in the Beijing Olympics using children's bare hands
- 4. Sudan
  - Recruit as child soldiers
  - Forced labor on farms
  - Young girls taken and forced to work as sex workers/slaves
- 3. Somalia
  - 40% of children under 15 are forced into child labor
  - Dangerous machinery tools
  - Carrying heavy loads
  - Applying harmful pesticides
  - Handling livestock
  - Used in arm conflict
  - Used as bodyguards
  - Used as sex slaves within militia
- 2. North Korea
  - Child "re-education through labor"
  - Youths placed in labor camps due to political offenses
  - Government outlawed underage work
  - Seen working in fields and factories
- 1. Myanmar
  - 40% of children never enroll in school
  - Army recruits as young as 12
  - If not in army, forced into labor
  - Farms
  - Running street markets
  - Collect trash from streets
  - Suicide is common due to the harsh treatment
What We're Doing About This
- Campaigning to change the public's opinion
- Promoting free education for all children
  - Bangladesh Building
  - Woodworkers' Federation
  - Metal Workers' Union
  - The above three are federations and trying to work for these things:
    - Remove from hazardous work places
    - Enroll in school and assistant programs
- Collective Bargaining Strategies
  - 2000- International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine, and General Workers Unions signed an agreement with Freudenberg Corporation which commits a ban on child labor
- Enforcing Codes of Conduct
  - Sydney, Australia Olympics in 2000
    - Created and signed an agreement with the Olympic Organization Committee saying no child labor could be used in the making of the Olympics
- Creating a Minimum Working Age
  - Ensures children don't start working too early
  - Allows them an education
- The Music Against Child Labor Initiative
  - Launched in 2013
  - Asks orchestras, choirs, and musicians worldwide to dedicate a song to the fight against child labor
- The International Labor Organization
  - United Nations Agency
  - Promotes decent work throughout the world
  - Have numerous conventions (international agreements) dealing with working conditions around the world
    - Convention for Minimum Age Limit
      - Hazardous Work
        Any work likely to hurt mental/physical health of child should not be done by children age 18 and under
      - Basic Minimum Age
        Should not be below 15 years
      - Light Work
        Children may do light work, nothing that might jeopardize health or safety
    - The Worst Farms Convention (1999- 151 Countries)
      - Prohibits the worst forms of child labor:
        Debt bondage
        Child trafficking
        Slavery
        Forced recruitment
        Prostitution
        Drug production or trafficking
        Any other hazardous work
They have estimated that 250 million children between 5 and 14 years work in developing countries
- 61% in Asia
- 32% in Africa
- 7% in Latin America
Businesses in Trouble
- Walmart
  - 200 kids
  - Age 11 or younger
  - Sewing clothes in a Factory in Bangladesh

Blogs

Week of November 16-November 20: CWI

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