In order to contribute to strengthening the role of workers' organizations in the prevention and eradication of child labor and the protection of adolescent labor permitted in the region, a work has recently been carried out to identify and characterize institutions linked to the union world , that they take action in the fight against child labor and the promotion of youth employment .

This work was developed by the Human Rights Area of the Trade Union Confederation of Workers of the Americas (CSA) and the International Program for the Elimination of Child Labor (IPEC) of the International Labor Organization (ILO), who have achieved identify the profile, experience and opinions of 38 organizations from 18 countries in South America, Central America, the Caribbean and North America.

A key data reported by the organizations is those members or beneficiaries who are in a situation of child labor, have greater participation in agriculture (14 trade union centrals and 22 organizations in general report it), which coincides with the data from work in the Latin American and Caribbean region, according to which 47% of working children are in the agricultural sector.

Another observation from various institutions is the decent work deficit as a cause and consequence of child labor. It was pointed out that the lack of employment in families is an incentive towards child labor, so it is essential to address this problem, overcoming employment deficits, as well as training and raising awareness among families about the consequences of child labor.

One concern of the organizations in Central America and North America is the relationship between child labor and migration , as confirmed by the observations of the Central of Costa Rican Workers' Movements and Canadian organizations.

The case of the Social Association for the Promotion of Citizenship and Human Development (EREMIM) stands out, indicated by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) as one of the 4 best experiences in the Americas in preventing social risk and child labor. EREMIM's actions seek to promote the integral development of children and adolescents with socio-educational and cultural activities of digital inclusion, music, dance, sport, etc. Similarly, the initiative of the Guarulhos and Region Metalworkers Union that founded the "Mi Futuro" Cultural and Sports Institute in 2002 to help children and adolescents in the Guarulhos region, has already made a contribution with schools and the surrounding public network.
The methodology used for the development of this work has been based on our mapping of institutions –tool where these organizations have already been entered– and on the criteria and suggestions provided by the CSA and key informants from the union organizations themselves.

To download the database of these institutions, enter here . If you know more organizations linked to preventing and eradicating child labor, and protecting permitted adolescent work, we invite you to locate them on our map .