Imagine It’s 7 a.m. on a Thursday and your alarm just went off, even though it's the middle of summer, you still have to get up early for work. You say goodbye to your little sister and leave with a few snacks in your backpack, which was the backpack you used for this school year, that you’ll have on your break. You walk outside and grab your old ragged red bike then head out. Your stomach is growling because you haven't eaten anything all day except for a cheese stick because your mom managed to muster up some extra money.
Your parents woke up 3 hours ago and have already left for work to put food on the table for you and your little sibling, so you’re left on your own for transportation. On the way to work, you stumble across 3 kids who look about your age, playing outside with each other. You look at them, then yourself, then them again, then yourself again. They all have nice bright pink and blue floral summer dresses and fun shorts and bright T-shirts, while you have long ripped jeans with stains on them, because your family hasn’t gone to the laundromat in a week, and a bright orange construction jersey that your boss gave you. You start to feel jealous because every other kid you see gets to live a normal life but you don’t. You’re busy working so that your family can have food on the table and pay for rent.

When you finally get to work at around 7:45 a.m., you walk inside the construction zone and reach for your helmet on the shelves, only to realize that all the helmets are gone because you had gotten there 10 minutes later than everybody else. You try not to worry about it too much and just start to get to work. Your job is to transport gutters, wood, nails, bricks, and tools to the other workers. As you’re walking with the last batch of wood planks, you suddenly hear someone start shouting, “Out of the way!”. You stop in your tracks and look around, thinking they weren’t talking to you then, “BAM!” a big stack of wooden planks falls onto your head. You end up in a 2 week long coma and as soon as you wake up, you realize how long you’ve been out and are disappointed that you only caused more trouble for your family, who's already busy working all day. You end up with lifelong brain damage that can cause you issues in the future. You’re shocked and surprised as to how easy it was to go from safe, to not safe, all because you didn’t wear a helmet at work.
A few weeks later, you learn about the damage that, not only you but, many children experience everyday due to child labor and poverty. You decide to do some extra research to find out what is causing child labor to be so hard on children, and why child labor is still a problem for the U.S. today. As you further investigate, you find out that child labor was first seen in the U.S. a little over 100 years ago. Still, the United States has yet to solve this issue.
Sometimes people find themselves complaining about schoolwork or chores, but in reality, the things people have to deal with can sometimes be nowhere near as harsh as those who have to experience child labor. Many wonder
why instead of adults, children are the ones working, rather than learning and how adults can sometimes be the immature ones, only worrying about themselves and not stepping up to solve problems that wouldn’t normally affect them. Child labor is harming children all over and should come to an end.
The first few cases of Child Labor in the United States were seen in the 1930s, supposedly giving the United States plenty of time to make different advancements to prevent Children from the dangers of these jobs, but in reality, the only thing the U.S. has done is create new laws that, instead of protecting children, break down the prior laws that were keeping the children safe. Americans should care about this issue because child labor is very dangerous, and many children throughout the United States face injuries and some even killed due to harsh and dangerous tasks. Child Labor not only affects the children but their loved ones as well, inflicting sadness and fear on their families as a result of Child Labor. A study conducted by a Columnist Andrew Van Dam stated, “Children were killed on the job in construction, retail, transportation and even manufacturing and logging. But most of them, 52 percent, died working in agriculture”(Van Dam, 1). The direct need for more protection and regulations that will benefit the Children and maybe even adults of the United States is clear. Child labor is just morally wrong in general and considering the fact that it is killing children as well, just makes matters much worse. Columnist Van Dam adds on to his analysis by explaining , “About 452 children died as a result of workplace injuries between 2003 and 2016, according to the Government Accountability Office. Seventy-three of those who died were aged 12 or younger” (Van Dam, 1). Children all around us are being taken advantage of resulting in death. If this continues, more and more children will die and parents might even develop a sense of depression because of losing their children. The U.S. allowing this to continue is also creating a bad image for the so-called, “Land of the Free”. Two authors from the National Center of Farmworker Health concluded that, “The U.S. Department of Labor estimates that more than four million children are legally employed and that another one to two million are employed under illegal, often exploitative conditions” (Landrigan and McCammon, 1). Considering that half of the children employed are actually being employed under illegal conditions is enunciating the idea that the United States just doesn’t seem to care. This is why the first step to completely ending child labor is to create a lot more awareness. The United States Government should enforce stricter consequences that will prevent companies from hiring and endangering underage adolescents.
Many child laborists still continue to target immigrant children due to their vulnerability and fear of not wanting to get caught without documents and due to them and their family being in poverty. Many children lack maturity and aren’t sure what the right and wrong things to do are. That's why so many of the children, especially immigrant children who want to have a fresh start in the United States, are oblivious to the things they are getting themselves into. According to Data from the Labor Department, “child labor violations have nearly quadrupled since 2015” (Kaori Gurley, Sacchetti, 1) and adds that there is significant, “spiking in hazardous jobs that American citizens typically shun” (Kaori Gurley, Sacchetti, 1). The reason for the spike in hazardous jobs is because more and more immigrants entering the United States are
being threatened by companies. The immigrant children don’t want them or their families to be caught without documents, so they stay quiet and do what they are told, and the companies stay quiet so that they aren’t caught acting against child labor laws. Journalist, Hannah Dreier, interviewed a, “13-year-old boy in Michigan who worked 12-hour shifts at an egg farm, six days a week” (Mosley 1), and added how, “He told [her] that really he wanted to go to school, but he hadn't understood how expensive things were in this country” (Mosley 1). The U.S. needs to understand that there should be more accessible ways for immigrant children to get education, instead of working to earn money for their families. Most children only have jobs because their families are in poverty and their parents/guardians aren’t earning enough as it is, so they pitch in to help. Dreier illustrates how she, “estimates that some 250,000 children have crossed into the U.S. without their parents in the last two years, and that the majority of them wind up working full-time jobs” (Mosley, 1). Many children come to the U.S. to have more opportunities, but end up working their life away, not achieving anything. Dreier states that these jobs go to “undocumented child migrants'' (Mosley, 1). Migrant and Immigrant children come to the United States for more opportunities, but child laborists are preventing this from happening. If the U.S. does something about the poverty rates, children will actually be able to live their lives.
If young immigrant children continue to be taken advantage of, the harms and dangers of working long and tiring jobs can end up leading to near death experiences, not only hurting the children, but their loved ones as well. Children all over the U.S. are being severely injured and even killed due to them working the harsh jobs that the adults simply won’t do. This immaturity is causing the U.S. to become a dangerous place and many people don’t consider their environments as protective anymore, inflicting fear and sadness. A columnist explained, “A 12-year-old was cleaning drainage systems in Tennessee in March when an ATV flipped onto him. He died from his injuries” (Van Dam, 1). Children as young as 12 years old are being killed as they continue to be hired for jobs by companies who very clearly understand the dangers of the job, but just don’t care. The U.S. government needs to take charge and start to create more consequences that companies have to face if they act against child labor laws. The same columnist added on by sharing another deadly incident, explaining how, “A 14-year-old boy was trapped in eight feet of feed in a silo while working with his father on a Wisconsin dairy farm in June — they both died” (Van Dam, 1). If child labor is constantly killing people, not only the children but their family too, why haven’t we fixed the issue? The children of the U.S. are future leaders and instead of protecting them, we are harming them.
Industries should follow all laws regarding child labor to decrease the rate of child injuries, and prevent their industry from being sued. According to a reporter, many cases of child labor, “[happen] underground”(Bomey, Kraushaar, 1), and how in some cases, “they're actually products that we all buy and we have in our homes, and so without realizing it, we may be relying on child labor to get some of the things that we use ” (Bomey, Kraushaar, 1). If people found out that the companies that they love and trust were going behind their backs and participating in child labor, many people would
be upset. It’s a harsh reality that a lot of people need to consider and face. Other than people facing and considering this fact, the companies need to start to follow the rules and laws regarding child labor so that the people that are buying from them, won’t have to boycott their company or even sue them. According to the same reporter, “minors were found to be illegally employed in as many as 20 states, and in facilities making products for companies including J Crew, General Motors, Ben and Jerry’s and more”(Bomey, Kraushaar, 1). Companies that we buy from everyday are illegally hiring and employing children all around the U.S.. These industries should consider different ways to hire people other than illegally employing minors/children and doing this they will not only protect the children, but they will be protecting their company's reputation and status. According to a conducted investigation, “10-year-olds received little or no pay at a McDonald’s in Louisville, the Labor Department said. The three franchisees were fined $212,000 in total”(Labor Department, 1). If companies start to follow regulations and the laws, then their companies would not be sued or fined such a hefty amount that they might not even be able to afford. Like this example provided, the McDonald’s both were fined 212,000 in total, which is more than a lot of people make in 2 years. It would benefit the companies and the children if they were to just simply follow regulations and rules.
The United States government should create more accessible and safe places to live and ways for people, especially immigrants, to earn money. If the U.S. government creates more accessibility, immigrants coming in from other countries won’t have to force their children to work because they’ll be able to afford what they need. Although, if immigrants do end up having their children work legally, as long as the jobs are safer, there would be nothing too harsh to worry about other than the children being overworked. A recent study by Economist John Creamer stated, “The U.S. official poverty rate was 11.6% in 2021, while the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM) dipped to 7.8%, its lowest point on record, according to U.S. Census Bureau data'' (Creamer, 1). Demonstrating that with help, poverty rates dip incredibly, showing that with a little help from the Government, immigrants can get what they need safely. Not only immigrants would be benefited by this, but many people in the United States would as well. With service from the United States Government, homelessness rates would drop and the United States as a whole would be stronger. Creamer extends his analysis, expressing, “The difference in estimates shows how taxes and non-cash government programs can help lift more people out of poverty”(Creamer, 1). All the immigrants in poverty need a bit of assistance which, for the government, shouldn't take too long due to the amount of power they have. To raise awareness for those in poverty in the United States is still a set goal for many, illustrating how we as a whole still have a long way to go. If this is accomplished, the death rates for children under the age of 18 should substantially drop.
The United States Government officials should rewrite the weakening child labor laws to further promote children’s safety. According to Jennifer Sherer, a state policy coordinator, “The number of minors employed in violation of child labor laws increased 37% in the last year and at least 10 states introduced or passed laws rolling back child labor protections in the past two years” (Sherer, 1). If these rates continue to grow, more and more children, especially immigrant children, will be harmed and even killed. It would benefit many people to simply re-write the weakening laws that have been introduced by 20% of the United States. Re-writing the weakening laws for the better will induce safety regulations for people, creating a safer environment for minors in general. In addition, Sherer suggests, “Federal laws providing minimum protections for child labor were enacted nearly a century ago, leading many to assume that children working in grueling and/or dangerous jobs was a thing of the past” (Sherer, 1). Many people are oblivious as to what cases of child labor are happening today. If this unawareness continues, even more of the U.S. might begin to introduce laws weakening child protections, backtracking instead of advancing.
Child labor as a whole is causing children all around the U.S. to suffer because of the decisions the government and states are making. It’s evident that the children are being injured, but also in some cases, adults are also injuring themselves literally, and financially. We can’t continue like nothing is happening anymore because child labor is the type of issue that won’t simply fix itself. The U.S. government needs to further mandate the companies all around, because they on their own can’t seem to follow regulations. It is only a matter of time before the United States as a whole is forced to break itself down because of the lack of leadership people have taken to try to bring this issue to an end. The U.S. government should create stricter regulations for companies to follow because of the continuous harm and danger being inflicted on children, due to the effects of child labor.

Works Cited
Axios. “American Companies Using Illegal Child Labor.” Axios, 1 Mar. 2023, www.axios.com/2023/03/01/american-child-labor.
“A Cleaning Company Illegally Employed a 13-Year-Old. Her Family Is Paying the Price.” The Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2023, www.washingtonpost.com/business/2023/03/03/child-labor-workers-fallout-migrants/

Creamer, John. “Supplemental Poverty Measure That Accounts for Additional Government Benefits Lowest on Record at 7.8%.” Census.Gov, 13 Sept. 2022, www.census.gov/library/stories/2022/09/government-assistance-lifts-millions-out-of-poverty.html#:~:text=Supplemental%20Poverty%20Measure%20That%20Accounts,Lowest%20on%20Record%20at%207.8%25&text=The%20U.S.%20official%20poverty%20rate,Census%20Bureau%20data%20released%20today.

Dam, Andrew Van. “Analysis | 452 Children Died on the Job in the U.S. between 2003 and 2016.” The Washington Post, 15 July 2021, www.washingtonpost.com/business/2018/12/20/child-labor-deaths-us-twenty-first-century/.

Dreier, Hannah, and Kirsten Luce. “Alone and Exploited, Migrant Children Work Brutal Jobs across the U.S.” The New York Times, 25 Feb. 2023, www.nytimes.com/2023/02/25/us/unaccompanied-migrant-child-workers-exploitation.html.

Landrigan, P J, and J B McCammon. “Child Labor Still with US after All These Years.” Public Health Reports (Washington, D.C. : 1974), 1997, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1381923/#:~:text=Across%20the%20United%20States%2C%20child,employment%20for%20children%20and%20adolescents.

Mosley, Tonya. “Amid a Child Labor Crisis, U.S. State Governments Are Loosening Regulations.” NPR, 4 May 2023, www.npr.org/2023/05/04/1173697113/immigrant-child-labor-crisis.

Press, Associated. “McDonald’s Franchises Fined for Child Labor Violations in Labor Department Crackdown.” PBS, 3 May 2023, www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/mcdonalds-franchises-fined-for-child-labor-violations-in-labor-department-crackdown#:~:text=Agency%20investigators%20found%20the%2010,were%20fined%20%24212%2C000%20in%20total.

Report • By Jennifer Sherer and Nina Mast • March 14. “Child Labor Laws Are under Attack in States across the Country: Amid Increasing Child Labor Violations, Lawmakers Must Act to Strengthen Standards.” Economic Policy Institute, www.epi.org/publication/child-labor-laws-under-attack/. Accessed 19 May 2023.