Child labor in Brazil
Child labor, the practice of employing children under the legal age set by a government, is considered one of Brazil's most significant social issues.
[1] According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), poverty is the leading cause of child labor in the world (including Brazil).
Children are forced to work to supplement family income, eliminating their studies and social lives.
Social movements were created to increase awareness of child labor in Brazil, such as the introduction of the hashtag #ChegaDeTrabalhoInfantil.
Other steps included changes to labor laws and increased funding for government welfare programs, such as Bolsa Família, which support impoverished families.
Regional disparities are evident, with the Northeast and North showing the highest rates of child labor.
[7][8] Child labor, according to the ILO,[9] is "work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential, and their dignity, and that is harmful to physical and mental development."
[5] Early documentation of Portuguese ships included evidence of minors working in the 16th century on sea voyages for immigrants from Portugal and other parts of Europe.
[13] The first organization to use minors for labor was the Brazilian Navy during the Paraguay War,[5] and data indicates that over 600 children aged nine to 12 were on the battlefield.
Children in favelas are desirable middlemen in drug trafficking, since their minor status makes them immune from prosecution.
Capitalists would hire minors, since there were no laws regulating child labor and children were perceived as costing less.
In São Paulo, with widespread industrialization and a corresponding demand for workers, textile factories published advertisements recruiting children in the mid-1870s.
[14] When teenager Francisco Augusto de Fonseca did not perform his job to the owner's expectations, he was brutally struck on the face.
[5] Attempts to protect children's rights and regulate child labor began during the late 19th century,[5] and an 1891 decree concerned minor employees in the factories of Brasília.
In the agricultural sector, children fish, harvest molluscs, and produce rice, soybeans, tobacco and charcoal.
[47] In July 2017, inspectors were prevented from conducting child-labor inspections in the states of São Paulo and Rio Grande do Norte.
[37] The plan's goals include: Forced labor is an integral part of the child-labor issue in Brazil.
[50] The current version of the National Plan for the Eradication of Forced Labor, introduced in 2008, establishes its policy framework.
[53] Social programs aim to address child labor in Brazil directly or indirectly.
Some are funded by the government, such as Bolsa Família (a family welfare program introduced during Lula's presidency).
[54] In addition to ensuring income to families, it includes children and young people in counseling and follow-up services.
[37] Studies suggest that the program has improved girls' school participation and educational performance, but has had little effect on boys.
