title: Exposures Resulting in Safety and Health Concerns for Child Laborers in Less Developed Countries.
abstract: Objectives. Worldwide, over 200 million children are involved in child labor, with another 20 million children subjected to forced labor, leading to acute and chronic exposures resulting in safety and health (S&H) risks, plus removal from formal education and play. This review summarized S&H issues in child labor, including forced or indentured domestic labor as other sectors of child labor. Specifically, we focused on exposures leading to S&H risks. Methods. We used PubMed, Scopus, Science Direct, and Google Scholar. References were in English, published in 1990-2015, and included data focused on exposures and S&H concerns of child labor. Results. Seventy-six journal articles were identified, 67 met criteria, 57 focused on individual countries, and 10 focused on data from multiple countries (comparing 3-83 countries). Major themes of concern were physical exposures including ergonomic hazards, chemical exposure hazards, and missed education. Childhood labor, especially forced, exploitative labor, created a significant burden on child development, welfare, and S&H. Conclusions. More field researche data emphasizing longitudinal quantitative effects of exposures and S&H risks are needed. Findings warranted developing policies and educational interventions with proper monitoring and evaluation data collection, plus multiple governmental, international organization and global economic reform efforts, particularly in lower-income, less developed countries.
authors.affiliation: Rutgers School of Public Health (SPH), Center for School and Community-Based Research and Education (NJ Safe Schools Program), New Brunswick, NJ 08854, USA; Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Rutgers SPH, Piscataway, NJ, USA; Exposure Measurement and Assessment Division, Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA.
authors.forename: Derek G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Shendell
authors.affiliation: Rutgers School of Public Health (SPH), Center for School and Community-Based Research and Education (NJ Safe Schools Program), New Brunswick, NJ 08854, USA; Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Rutgers SPH, Piscataway, NJ, USA.
authors.forename: Saisattha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Noomnual
authors.affiliation: Rutgers School of Public Health (SPH), Center for School and Community-Based Research and Education (NJ Safe Schools Program), New Brunswick, NJ 08854, USA; Rutgers Center for Green Building, Edward J. Bloustein School for Planning and Public Policy, Rutgers, The State University of NJ, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA; School of Arts and Sciences, Rutgers, The State University of NJ, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA.
authors.forename: Shumaila
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chishti
authors.affiliation: Rutgers Center for Green Building, Edward J. Bloustein School for Planning and Public Policy, Rutgers, The State University of NJ, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA.
authors.forename: MaryAnn
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sorensen Allacci
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Rutgers SPH, Piscataway, NJ, USA.
authors.forename: Jaime
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Madrigano
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003906:Developing Countries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004651:Employment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D011634:Public Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012449:Safety / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*