DOL Commits $59 Million to End Child Labor

It's nice to see a government agency putting their money where their reports and public statements are (for once). Following up their in-depth report identifying consumer goods made by child and/or forced labor in a number of countries, the Department of Labor has now committed $59 million dollars in grants to help end those practices and remove victims to safety. You can't see it, but I'm having a personal little party right now.

Here's how the breakdown of dollars went regionally:

• Africa: $20.4 million
• Latin America: $15.8 million
• Asia: $15.3 million

The rest of the funds will go to research and the development of a best practices model to prevent child labor. While I'm usually a fan of anything that channels more money to my often-ignored and under-funded friend Africa, I have to question their distribution between Africa and Asia. While Africa has some incredibly serious child trafficking and forced labor issues to address, the industries in Asia which enslave children and workers are much more diverse. Plus, the sheer logistics of getting to rural areas in Asian countries is much harder based on their size, and rural areas is where most of the exploitation is taking place. Arguably, African countries will be less able to put forth their own funds than relatively wealthier Asian countries like India and China, but I would still reconsider the expense of implementing a diversity of programs in the vast rural regions of Asia. It's going to be a huge undertaking.

But despite my difference of opinion on the funding allocations, I'm still celebrating. The reason for my party is that unlike previous administrations, <cough> Bush <cough>, it's good to see that the DOL under Secretary Solis isn't going to talk a big game and then sit on the cash and refuse to take any concrete action. The DOL is also modeling a behavior that we as consumers should pay attention to: if you say you care about this issue, be willing to pay for it. That means we have to be willing to spend a little more for t-shirts, coffee, rugs, and everything else that is made without child or forced labor. But if we're all willing to pay a little more, than no one has to pay a lot, especially enslaved children.