Poverty and Child Labour in Australia

Children, Education, Settings and Society
Children, Education, Settings and Society
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Children, Education, Settings and Society
Poverty and Child labour as a contemporary issue in Australia
The social media used to obtain the information is the Television and the newspapers in
Australia. The issue of poverty and child labour in Australia prevents the students from
accessing early childhood education in the nation. The newspapers are in frontline advertising
and calling the Australian government to intervene the matter. On another hand Television
programs are now calling the Australian government to induce new procedures that will help
in handling child labour and poverty in the country. Child labour and reluctance of the
Australian government to have a commitment in the child labour laws is one of the
contemporary social cultural issue that affect the early childhood education in Australia.
According to the article by Wilkins, Warren, Hahn and Houng (2011) a research by
University of Adelaide experts suggests that Australia, among the developed countries, has
lagged behind by not putting a signature on the international convention on the minimum age
required for workers. South Australia on the other hand has also remained behind by not
having adequate child labour laws. A professor from the school of law in the University of
Adelaide terms the Australian’s position on the minimum age for workers as an international
embarrassment. Professor Rosemary Owens’ speech on the world day against child labour
was recorded on an online newspaper and here are her words,
"Australia is one of only 20 member countries that have not yet signed the Minimum Age
Convention of 1973, which underpins the International Labour Organization's (ILO's)
Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. This is one of the conventions
established by the ILO which ensures that countries are committed to the effective abolition
of child labour" (Craig & Mullan, 2016).
Some of regulations for child labour section in law include;
Australia's War Crimes Act (1945).

Children, Education, Settings and Society
Child Employment Act 2006 (NSW).
Workplace Relations Act 1996 (Cth).
The professor is a globally recognised labour law expert and he works with the committee
of the International Labour Organization. The ILO is a United Nations special agency whose
main role is to see to it that proper working conditions and standards are maintained in the
whole world.
The professor says that the convention which sets the minimum working age at sixteen
years has been signed by most developing and the developed countries including the United
Kingdom with only Australia, United States, Canada and New Zealand being the notable
exceptions. She says that the Australian government has been talking about the child labour
issue for several years but so far, there has not been any concrete resolution taken. She points
out how most of the Australian states have child labour laws, some of which are very strong
but their regulations have not yet been standardised from one state to another.
The South Australian government has formed regulations such as education policies
regulating education system so as to prevent the young school children aged between five and
sixteen years from getting employed at a time they are supposed to be in school. The law
however does not prevent the children from working after the normal school hours which
affects their next day in school. They may feel tired and reluctant to go to school. This
example illustrates the lack of a legal framework in child labour that can protect the children
from risks that might lead them to unhappy and unhealthy lives and eventually dropping out
of school.
Literature review.
The effects of child labour in early childhood education is a globally recognised issue. The
issue has been of great concern in the 21st century due to the fact that most national education
sectors have not included the issue of child labour in their strategy plans and that there are