Child Labor:
Characteristics of Working Children
HRD-91-83BR: Published: Jun 14, 1991. Publicly Released: Jun 14, 1991.
Additional Materials:
- Full Report:
Contact:
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO examined: (1) the economic and demographic characteristics of child workers; (2) the number of serious injuries sustained by children detected the Department of Labor as being illegally employed; and (3) Labor's policy with regard to penalizing employers illegally employing children who sustain serious injuries and to child labor violations generally.
GAO found that: (1) according to the Bureau of the Census, 28 percent of all 15-year-olds and 51 percent of all 16-to-17-year olds worked some time during 1988; (2) children aged 15 to 17 years from families with annual incomes of $20,000 or less were less likely to be employed than those from high-income families; (3) minority children aged 15 to 17 years were employed at a lower rate than white children in the same age group in 1988; (4) children from low-income families were more likely to be employed in agriculture or other hazardous industries, such as manufacturing or construction, and to work more hours per week but fewer weeks per year than children from high-income families; (5) about 18 percent of employed 15-year-olds worked in violation of federal child labor regulations governing maximum hours or minimum ages for employment; (6) between fiscal year (FY) 1983 and FY 1990, the Department of Labor detected 1,475 serious injuries of illegally employed children; (7) most violations involving serious injuries of working children were associated with hazardous order violations; (8) in FY 1990, Labor assessed the maximum nonwillful violation penalty of $1,000 against only child labor violators employing a child who was seriously injured; and (9) Labor did not cite any of those employers for willful violations and did not refer any for criminal prosecution.
Oct 19, 2020
-
Fair Labor Standards Act:
Observations on the Effects of the Home Care RuleGAO-21-72: Published: Oct 19, 2020. Publicly Released: Oct 19, 2020.
Jun 22, 2020
-
Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act:
Additional DOL Actions Needed to Help States and Employers Address Substance Use DisorderGAO-20-337: Published: May 21, 2020. Publicly Released: Jun 22, 2020.
Apr 14, 2020
-
Job Corps:
DOL Should Provide Greater Transparency in Communicating Its Rationale for Closure DecisionsGAO-20-240R: Published: Apr 14, 2020. Publicly Released: Apr 14, 2020.
Feb 14, 2020
-
National Mediation Board:
Additional Actions Needed to Fully Implement Prior GAO Recommendations and Improve Agency Management and OversightGAO-20-236: Published: Feb 14, 2020. Publicly Released: Feb 14, 2020.
Feb 10, 2020
-
National Weather Service:
Information on Contractor Selection and Work Performed for Its Operations and Workforce Analysis ProjectGAO-20-271R: Published: Jan 30, 2020. Publicly Released: Feb 10, 2020.
Sep 9, 2019
-
Job Corps:
Actions Needed to Improve Planning for Center Operation ContractsGAO-19-326: Published: Aug 8, 2019. Publicly Released: Sep 9, 2019.
Apr 10, 2019
-
Priority Open Recommendations:
Department of LaborGAO-19-395SP: Published: Apr 3, 2019. Publicly Released: Apr 10, 2019.
Apr 9, 2019
-
Military Spouse Employment:
Participation in and Efforts to Promote the My Career Advancement Account ProgramGAO-19-320R: Published: Apr 9, 2019. Publicly Released: Apr 9, 2019.
Apr 8, 2019
-
Workforce Automation:
Better Data Needed to Assess and Plan for Effects of Advanced Technologies on JobsGAO-19-257: Published: Mar 7, 2019. Publicly Released: Apr 8, 2019.
Mar 28, 2019
-
Employment and Training Programs:
Department of Labor Should Assess Efforts to Coordinate Services Across ProgramsGAO-19-200: Published: Mar 28, 2019. Publicly Released: Mar 28, 2019.
Looking for more? Browse all our products here