The Philippine Statistics Authority reported that the number of Filipino child laborers, or those aged 5 to 17 who are forced in to dangerous, exploitative work, has declined in 2022.
According to its latest situation report on employed minors dated July 25, the PSA estimated there were 828,000 Filipino child laborers last year, accounting for 56 percent of the 1.48 million total “working children” in the country in 2022.
Under the country’s labor laws, minors aged 15 to 17 can be legally employed – but only within a safe, limited range of jobs – and are referred to as “working children.” They are distinguished from “child laborers,” or those who are illegally forced to do dangerous work and in exploitative conditions.
According to the PSA, a child aged 5 to 17 years old is considered working if he or she had a job or business or worked either paid or unpaid in the family farm or business. The Department of Labor and Employment has pegged the minimum employable age at 15, so minors who are at least 15 but below 18 are legally allowed to work, provided they are not engaged in child labor.
The PSA report cited an 11.44 percent decline from the 935,000 child laborers in 2021, accounting for 68.4 percent of the 1.37 estimated working children that year.
Child labor is defined as work or economic activity performed by a child that subjects him to any form of exploitation or is harmful to his health and safety, physical, mental or psychosocial development, according to DOLE. It is also defined as hazardous work, often done for long hours, at nighttime, or the entire day.
PSA data shows that a vast majority of the country’s child laborers are in the agriculture sector, at almost 7 out of every 10, and 25.9 percent in services, and 5.3 percent in the industry sector.
The report also noted that the number of Filipino working children has increased during the pandemic. It shot up from an estimated 872,000 in 2020 to 1.37 million in 2021, and further to 1.48 million last year.
The decrease in child laborers could be spun as a positive development, but along with the increase in working children, it is still a worrying statistic that Filipino government society needs to urgently address. The continued presence of working children and/or child laborers in the country is a symptom of a sickness that has to be addressed by the government agencies involved, in cooperation with the private and business sectors that are among the biggest violators.*
