Illegal Child Labor in the United States

Prevalence and Characteristics

Bibliographic Data

ID3188010
AuthorsDouglas Kruse (0000-0002-7121-7616, National Bureau of Economic Research), Douglas L Kruse, Douglas Mahony, Douglas M Mahony (Rutgers Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights)
Year2000
Volume54
Issue1
Pages17
Publication date2000-10-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueIndustrial and Labor Relations Review (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0019-7939 • E-ISSN: 2162-271X
PublisherJSTOR (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.2307/2696030
OpenAlexW2892126190, W3123979631
LanguageEN
Citations received7
References cited14

Using the Current Population Survey, the National Longitudinal Survey, and other sources, the authors provide the first comprehensive estimates of the number of minors working in violation of federal and state child labor laws (working excessive hours or in hazardous occupations), their characteristics, their wages, and trends in illegal child labor. Although illegal employment of 15-17-year-olds has declined since the 1970s, some 154,000 minors are employed illegally in an average week, and 301,000 in a year. Illegal work hours total about 110 million per year. Whites, males, and 15-year-olds are the most likely to be working in violation of child labor laws. Youths working illegally in hazardous jobs earn, on average, $1.38 per hour less than legal young adults in the same occupations, which, combined with savings from employing youths for excessive hours, adds up to employer cost savings of roughly $136 million per year

Business · Current Population Survey · Demographic economics · Economics · Environmental health · Labour economics · National Longitudinal Surveys · Point (geometry) · Population · Sociology · State (computer science) · Work (physics) · Work hours · Working hours · Agricultural risk and resilience · Demography · Engineering · Homelessness and Social Issues · Medicine · Poverty, Education, and Child Welfare

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