Our World in Data · Mens en maatschappij

Understanding the Scale of Child Labor: What 138 Million Children Actually Means

A UN report estimates 138 million children are in child labor, a figure significantly missing the 2025 Sustainable Development Goal target. Understanding this number requires defining what constitutes child labor, a concept debated for over a century.

Child labor is generally defined as work that is harmful to a child, endangering their health, safety, morals, or schooling. International conventions have attempted to codify this, but practical measurement required specific thresholds for age, hours, and job nature.

In 2008, the International Conference of Labour Statisticians (ICLS) established rules for measurement. The UN uses these rules: work in dangerous industries or for 43+ hours weekly is always child labor (hazardous work). For non-hazardous work, children under 12 doing any economic activity are counted, as are those aged 12-14 working 14+ hours weekly. Children aged 15 and above are not counted for non-hazardous work.

Economic activity excludes domestic chores but includes farm work for production. Applying these rules yields the 138 million estimate (8% of children aged 5-17). Of this, 54 million are in hazardous work, and 84 million are in non-hazardous jobs due to age or excessive hours, potentially displacing schooling, rest, and play.

A significant portion of child labor, nearly half, involves non-hazardous work by children under 12, often in agriculture. This counts because it displaces essential childhood activities. If work exceeds 43 hours weekly, it's classified as hazardous, regardless of the job's inherent danger.

Domestic chores are excluded from the definition of child labor, meaning children performing extensive household tasks are not counted, unlike those doing similar hours of farm work. This exclusion disproportionately affects girls, who tend to do more household work.

The estimates do not include severe forms like trafficking and forced labor, as these are difficult to measure through household surveys. The broad definition of child labor encompasses exploitative conditions as well as younger children working, even on family farms. Addressing child labor requires varied responses tailored to these different situations.

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