Geneva, July 8 (Prensa Latina) An ILO study in 15 countries in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America today showed that child labor and bonded labor are a reality for many people around the world.
The publication shows that up to 95 percent of children are employed in hazardous agriculture, particularly in the cocoa, palm oil and tobacco sectors.
He also asserted that forced labor was linked in many ways to workers’ dependence on employers.
“Many of them are young and left school at a young age with little or no education. The transition from education to work is difficult, if not impossible, for many in rural areas,” said ILO expert Maria Helena André in the report’s foreword.
The document also notes that around 80 percent of the world’s poor live in rural areas, many of whom face serious decent work deficits, including inadequate security, low wages, lack of stability and security, and poor working hours.
For the ILO, women and young people remain the most affected, especially those who are disproportionately represented in the most vulnerable positions and forced to take low-paid and low-skilled jobs, on top of the huge gender pay gap, face more harassment and abuse.
The report also describes exposure to chemicals as a serious health risk for farm workers, particularly minors and pregnant and lactating women.
Most rural workers are in the informal economy, which includes a large proportion of women employed as unpaid carers without access to maternity leave and other essential protections, the ILO said.
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