Child Labor is a form of abuse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Child Labor is a form of abuse - Essay Example o hazardous circumstances, prevents them from furthering their intellectual growth, and burdens them with responsibilities which are supposed to be undertaken by their parents. Child labor is a form of abuse as it exposes an individual into hazardous circumstances where his or her health and even entire life is at stake. Whenever we hear of child labor, what comes to mind is a picture is a thin and dirty child working long-hours in the factory. However, it has been found out that the agriculture sector employs the highest percentage of children who actively participates in activities like weeding, plowing, and taking care of farm animals. Both work places, whether in the manufacturing or agricultural industry, threaten the physical condition of the employed child. In a research conducted by Ashagrie in 1997, 9% of children in the manufacturing sector reports injury due to their lack of capacity in operating equipments. In the same study, the agricultural sector records a higher 12%. Edmonds and Pavcnik (2005: 208) identifies the hazards in agricultural work: â€Å"Agriculture can be hazardous to for children because of exposure to dangerous chemicals such as herbicides and insecticides, exposure to heat or weather, repetitive work injuries and threats posed by animals, reptiles, insects, parasites and some plants.† Child labor hampers children from furthering their intellectual growth by robbing them of time spend inside the classrooms to be educated. Childhood is a very significant period in the intellectual development in an individual. However, being tied in different chores hinders children from getting proper schooling. Even if it is argued that child labor equips children with some skills, empirical evidences emphasize that it significantly robs children the opportunity to be educated. Children who spend more time in work activities have less time to spare to attend their classes. Furthermore, â€Å"time spent working takes away from study, play, and sleep and