An Analysis of the Problem of Child Labor Worldwide

Read and discuss the following text.

Fill in the correct words derived from the words in bold.

Curriculum vitae, night shifts, impression, flexi-time, pay and conditions, interview, shift work, clock in and out, qualifications, child care

When applying for a job, it is extremely important to create the right 1)..........

Your prospective employer will already have read your 2)...........- information about your experience and 3)............- and decided to invite you to a(n) 4)............ if you appear suitable. During this meeting you should try to speak clearly and confidently as this will impress the interviewer. If your job involves 5)..............., you will be informed of the different times you'll begin work each day. Some jobs, such as lorry driving, may also involve working 6)............, so you will have to adjust your sleeping patterns. Other jobs offer the opportunity to work 7).............and are particularly suitable for people with other responsibilities such as 8).................You will probably have to use a card to 9)........................so that a record of your hours can be kept.

Finally, it is very important to ask any questions about 10)............................, so that there are no misunderstandings once you start your new job.

Sadly, losing one's job and becoming 1)............... (employ) is a common occurence for many people these days. As a result, the queues at local job centres have 2)..................(gradual) lengthened, as people on unemploy­ment benefit seek new employment. People usually end up on the dole because they have been made redundant - their 3)..........(employ) decided that their services were no longer required. Alternatively, they may have been given the sack for doing something wrong at work. In both cases, the unemployed person can claim social security, which is money from the 4)..........(govern) that helps cover the cost of 5)......... (day) living - food, heating bills and rent. However, social security cannot be claimed if a person has resigned, in other words, left his or her job by 6)........... (choose).

Children in developing countries work for a variety of reasons. The most common reason is poverty. Children work so that they and their families can survive. Though these children are not well paid, their families are so poor that they still serve as major contributors to family income. For example, children in poor families in Paraguay contribute almost 25 percent to the total household income.

In developing countries, rural-to-urban migration is another cause of the increasing rate of child labor. In the last 40 years, more and more people have migrated from the country to the city. In 1950, just 17 percent of the population of the developing world lived in urban areas. This figure increased to 32 percent in 1988. By the year

2000, it had risen to 40 percent, and it will probably reach 57 percent by the year 2025. Poor families who move to the cities usually do not find enough employment. Moving to the city forces families into poverty, and poverty forces parents to send children to work.

Tradition is another reason why some children work. Traditional roles can be particularly difficult for girls. In some countries, people believe that women won’t fit into traditional roles if they become educated. In these places, it's not uncommon for parents to force young girls to leave school in order for the girls to take over household duties or to work outside the home. By working, the girls assist in paying for their brothers' school fees.

Often parents in developing countries assign different roles to their children. This role assignment is called child specialization, and it also contributes to child labor. With child specialization, some children in the family go to school while others work. Many times roles are determined by the birth order. Often the oldest boy attends school while younger brothers and sisters work to support him.

Social class separation also contributes to child labor. For example, people of India's lower social class are usually manual laborers. Everyone expects lower class children to have jobs that do not require an education. Therefore, no one worries when they do not attend school. After all, they don't really need education for their role in society.

Studies show that the roles of children differ in developed and developing countries. While children in developing countries make an important contribution to family income, children in developed countries consume more than they produce. The child labor situation changes as the economic status of a country improves. For example, after World War II the United States experienced great economic development. Many mothers started working outside the home. For the first time in the United States, children used more resources than they produced. Evidence also suggests that the use of child labor may only be one stage in the development of a country. For example, 150 years ago. England had about the same percentage of child workers as Peru and Paraguay have today. It seems likely that as these countries develop, the amount of child labor will decrease.

Дата добавления: 2014-12-29