It is estimated that there are at least 250 million child
laborers worldwide. Although child labor is more ___1___
in Asia, Africa and Latin America, it is a growing problem in
every country.
Many of ___2___ children
have to work in harsh environment. Children who work as domestic
servants are subjected to physical or sexual abuse. They are
often deprived ___3___
social activity and schooling. They are very poorly paid, or not
paid at all.
Children are also pledged by their parents to factory owners
in exchange for small loans or they are kidnapped to work in
factories. Most are kept in ___4___,
tortured and made to work for twenty hours a day without a
break. Some are even chained to their beds at night to ___5___
them from running away. There are also those who work for
industries and plantations. They perform all kinds of duties ___6___
the day. Most of them work in hazardous conditions, with no
health and safety regulations.
In the streets of the developing world, children are ___7___
polishing shoes, hawking flowers and trinkets, or using other
ingenious ways to make money. For some, it is the only way of
getting food; for others, it is the beginning of a life of
crime. |