DEPARTMENT OF LABOR ANNOUNCES RECENT ACTIONS TO COMBAT EXPLOITATIVE CHILD LABOR
On July 27, 2023, the Department of Labor (DOL) and its partners from the Interagency Task Force to Combat Child Labor Exploitation today announced their recent actions to hold companies accountable for violating federal child labor laws.
This effort follows reports showcasing a 69 percent increase in findings of illegal child labor between 2018 and 2022. Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su stated, “The Biden-Harris administration, Department of Labor and members of the Interagency Task Force to Combat Child Labor Exploitation are leaving no stone unturned to root out exploitative child labor.”
Since the launch of these enhanced efforts, the department and task force have engaged with agencies across federal, state and local governments, resulting in new collaborative initiatives to prevent and address illegal child labor, that include the following:
Increasing focus on vigorously enforcing federal law and holding employers accountable
Emphasizing cross-training to ensure that every agency has the necessary skills to identify and report possible incidences of child labor exploitation
Updating and creating new materials to ensure partners, employers, and the general public are armed with the information needed to prevent child labor violations
Pursuing innovative partnerships and avenues to engage every facet of the federal government:
Secretary Su, the Department of Labor, and the Task Force and its members “are fully committed to using every governmental lever possible under federal law and current funding levels to stop the exploitation of young people in workplaces across the country.” For details, view the DOL news release here. Source
