Child Labor and Psychosocial Wellbeing: Findings from Ethiopia

For children who work, there has been little research into the intricate relationship between their home lives and their work lives and the implications that this relationship might hold for their psychosocial development and functioning. This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Amhara region, Ethiopia, between March and April 2020 on a sample of 1311 working children with the aim, in part, of exploring ways in which various dimensions of children’s psychological wellbeing are influenced by their working conditions and their family contexts. In addition to collecting data on some personal traits, family relationships, home environments, and detailed occupational characteristics, we gathered information on psychosocial wellbeing using 22 items from the Instrument for the Psychosocial Assessment of Working Children (IPAC). Exploratory factor analysis enabled us to identify five factors characterizing the dimensions of psychosocial wellbeing: work-related self-esteem, work-related stress, workplace supervision, emotional and somatic wellbeing, and self-determination. Linear regressions of these factors were then conducted on social, occupational, and environmental variables. We found that all dimensions of psychosocial wellbeing were significantly associated with the children’s working conditions. Of particular interest, work-related dimensions of wellbeing, such as stress, self-esteem, and supervision, were significantly associated with the characteristics of the home and family environment. These findings illustrate that work and working conditions must be considered jointly, along with family life and home environments, as factors in both environments affect working children’s socioemotional development and wellbeing. They also strengthen the call for a systemic approach to protecting children involved in child labor, in which families are central to all discussions.

Are Child Domestic Workers Worse Off than Their Peers? Comparing Children in Domestic Work, Child Marriage, and Kinship Care with Biological Children of Household Heads: Evidence from Zimbabwe

Child domestic work is a hidden form of child labour driven by poverty and social norms. However, little is known about the situations of child domestic workers. This study aims to describe and analyse gender-specific working conditions, health, and educational outcomes among hidden child domestic workers (CDWs) living in third-party homes relative to married children, biological children, and other children in kinship care. Data from the 2019 Zimbabwe Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) were analysed. Descriptive statistics and bivariable logistic regression were used to describe frequency and estimated prevalence. Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAGs) were used to identify exposures and inform the selection of covariates. Multivariable logistic regression models were fitted to estimate the effect of each exposure variable. The prevalence of CDWs was 1.5% and CDWs were mainly girls and living in much wealthier households with more educated household heads while married girls were living in much poorer households. When compared among girls themselves, being a CDW was significantly associated with having a functional disability, while married girls were more frequently engaged in hazardous working conditions. We provide the first intersectional analysis comparing work, violence, and health outcomes among CDWs, married children and other children. Child protection measures are needed to safeguard children in domestic work and marriages.

Child Domestic Work, Violence, and Health Outcomes: A Rapid Systematic Review

This rapid systematic review describes violence and health outcomes among child domestic workers (CDWs) taken from 17 studies conducted in low- and middle-income countries. Our analysis estimated the median reported rates of violence in CDWs aged 5-17-year-olds to be 56.2% (emotional; range: 13-92%), 18.9% (physical; range: 1.7-71.4%), and 2.2% (sexual; range: 0-62%). Both boys and girls reported emotional abuse and sexual violence with emotional abuse being the most common. In Ethiopia and India, violence was associated with severe physical injuries and sexual insecurity among a third to half of CDWs. CDWs in India and Togo reported lower levels of psycho-social well-being than controls. In India, physical punishment was correlated with poor psycho-social well-being of CDWs [OR: 3.6; 95% CI: 3.2-4; p < 0.0001]. Across the studies, between 7% and 68% of CDWs reported work-related illness and injuries, and one third to half had received no medical treatment. On average, children worked between 9 and 15 h per day with no rest days. Findings highlight that many CDWs are exposed to abuse and other health hazards but that conditions vary substantially by context. Because of the often-hidden nature of child domestic work, future initiatives will need to be specifically designed to reach children in private households. Young workers will also benefit from strategies to change social norms around the value and vulnerability of children in domestic work and the long-term implications of harm during childhood.

Evaluations of Interventions with Child Domestic Workers: A Rapid Systematic Review

Little is known about interventions to support the education, skills training, and health of female child domestic workers (CDWs). This rapid systematic literature review followed PRISMA guidelines (PROSPERO registration: CRD42019148702) and summarises peer-reviewed and grey literature on health, education, and economic interventions for CDWs and interventions targeting employers. We searched six electronic databases and purposively searched grey literature. We included observational studies, which included an intervention, quasi-experimental, and experimental studies. Two reviewers independently screened articles. Data were extracted on intervention description, inputs, activities, type of evaluation, outcomes, effect size or impact where applicable, limitations, and ethical considerations. All studies were quality appraised. We identified eight papers from five studies. Six papers reported on health-related outcomes, two on education-related outcomes, and three on economic outcomes. No evaluations of employer-related interventions were identified. Only one intervention specifically targeted CDWs. Others included CDWs in their sample but did not disaggregate data for CDWs. Findings suggest that the evaluated interventions had a limited impact on CDW’s health, education, and economic outcomes. While it appears feasible to reach CDWs with outreach interventions, further work is needed to improve the consistency of their effectiveness and their ability to improve CDWs’ current and future prospects.