Please join us in recognizing the Annual World Day Against Child Labour which takes place today.

  This year’s World Day also marks the tenth anniversary of the adoption of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention #182, which addresses the necessity to eliminate the worst forms of child labour.  The ILO will release a new report entitled "Give Girls a chance:  Tackling child labour, a key to the future," highlighting the exploitation of girls in child labour and warning that the crisis could force more girls out of education and into child labour.   (To find the report, see ILO web site below).

While some countries have made strides through legislative reform, other countries continue to turn a blind eye to the dreadful abuse against children, and young girls in particular.  For example, in February 2009, the Congress of Guatemala finally voted for a new law against sexual violence, exploitation, and human trafficking in an effort to protect the rights of children and adolescents who had fallen victim to such atrocities.  Unfortunately, child labour is still rampant in countries like the Philippines where, according to an article published on the ILO Web site recently, over 18,000 children as young as six years old continue to work in mines for less than a dollar a day; they are forced to quit school to support their families.  North American corporations continue to profit from the work of these low-wage young workers.

Although there are no official ILO events taking place in Canada listed on the Web site, there are free downloads of brochures, posters, presentations and information at the following link:
http://www.ilo.org/ipec/Campaignandadvocacy/WDACL/WorldDay2009/lang--en/index.htm. Unions such as the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) are calling on all governments to end child labour.  Please spread awareness of this international crisis, and help fight against the corporations who profit from child labour.