Child labor in Brazil

Child labor has been part of Brazilian history since 1500. Because the notions of youth or childhood were not well defined until the middle of the nineteenth century in the country, however,[10] there was limited information on child labor before the 20th century.[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.[11] Although children did domestic work before the arrival of European settlers, the degree of child labor in Brazil worsened drastically after the Europeans' arrival.[12] 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.[13] This involvement with the military and contact with weapons were some of the worst forms of child labor seen in Brazil. Children in favelas are desirable middlemen in drug trafficking, since their minor status makes them immune from prosecution.[14] Children were used widely for labor during the slavery period on sugar plantations.[15] Slaveholders embraced the idea of making the children of slaves work, since overall productivity increased without the purchase of more slaves.[16]

Industrialisation in Brazil, beginning in the late 19th century, replaced slavery in exploiting children. 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.[17] Most of São Paulo's working class consisted of poor immigrants, and some families depended on their children's work.[13] In 1890, 25 percent of São Paulo's textile labor force was made up of children;[5] in 1865 Rio de Janeiro, 64 percent of workers in a textile factory were children.[18] Children were injured or killed by the harsh work, poor working conditions, and violent treatment by their bosses. Armando Dias, a child worker in the textile industry, was electrocuted in November 1913.[13] When teenager Francisco Augusto de Fonseca did not perform his job to the owner's expectations, he was brutally struck on the face.[13] Child labor during this period was seen as a necessity; capitalists exploited the low cost of minor workers to suppress adult workers' wages, and poor families needed their children to work.[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.[19] The Brazilian Labour Confederation, which advocated restrictions on child labor, was founded in 1912.[20] Five years later, workers in São Paulo went on strike; their demands included the abolition of night work for workers under age 18 and all work for children under 14. In 1919, a city law set the legal working age at 14 years old. Constitutional amendments in 1934, 1937, and 1946 prohibited work by minors under 14. The 1964–1985 military dictatorship in Brazil, however, lowered the minimum working age to 12. Constitutional amendments in 1988 and 1998 and a 2000 law in 2000 are the present legal definition of child labor: hazardous work by minors under 18 and any form of labor by minors under 16. Apprenticeships are permitted at age 14.[5]

On February 2, 2000, the government ratified ILO convention 182.[21] On June 28 of that year, the Brazilian government ratified ILO convention 138.[22]

Child labor under age 14 by region

Child labor under age 18 by region

The Brazilian government has prioritized the eradication of child labor.[23] The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics began conducting the annual Brazilian National Household Sample Survey (PNAD) in 1981, which provides data on child-labor reports by region. In 2005, over 2.9 million children under age 17 engaged in some form of labor (7.8 percent of the age group).[5]

The 2016 survey indicated that 4.6 percent of children aged 5–17 (1.8 million out of 30 million) were working, an improvement over 2005. In 2016, most child labor was found in the 14–17 age group. Two-tenths of one percent of the 5–9 age group was working, 1.3 percent of the 10–13 age group, 6.4 percent of the 14–16 age group and 17 percent of the 16–17 age group. The persistence of child labor varies by region. The North and South Regions have the highest child-labor rates (5.7 and 6.3 percent, respectively). For children under 14, the North and Northeast Regions have the highest rates (1.5 and one percent, respectively). Racially, the black and brown (preta e parda) population makes up 64.1 percent of child labor; 35.9 percent are white (branca). Boys make up 65.3 percent of child workers. Of child laborers aged 5–13, 47.6 percent are agricultural workers; 21.4 percent of laborers aged 14–17 are farm workers. Although some agricultural work is performed as part of the vocational-training process, other children are forced to work in agriculture to supplement family income.[24]

Despite the gradual decrease in child labor, it is still prevalent (including hazardous occupations). In the agricultural sector, children fish, harvest molluscs, and produce rice, soybeans, tobacco and charcoal.[25] In industry, children work in quarries,[26] produce bricks[27] and slaughter animals.[28] In the service sector, children do street work such as garbage collection[29] and sometimes sell alcohol.[30] Children are forced to work for criminal gangs[31] or engage in prostitution.[32][33] Child sex tourism is common in coastal areas which attract tourists, and girls from other South American countries are sex workers in Brazil.[32] Efforts to further reduce child labor are working towards Sustainable Development Goal 8, which "promotes sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all."[34]

The Ministry of Labour (MTE) is in charge of labor-law enforcement. Its responsibilities include child-labor inspections, enforcing child-labor laws and dispatching inspection teams (inspectors, prosecutors, Federal Police officers and other law-enforcement officials) to sites where child labor is suspected.[44] However, gaps in MTE operations hinder full enforcement of labor laws. Although 7,491 child labor inspections were conducted in 2017, insufficient funding limits the inspection abilities of regions with no local MTE offices.[45] In July 2017, inspectors were prevented from conducting child-labor inspections in the states of São Paulo and Rio Grande do Norte.[46]

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). Others are on social media, such as #ChegaDeTrabalhoInfantil (#stopchildlabor).