Truthout
child labor
![A colorized photo depicts a child laborer standing among machinery in a cotton mill in Newbery, South Carolina, 1908.](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2023/04/2023_0428-child-labor-400x300.jpg)
Mother Jones Organized Against Child Labor 120 Years Ago: Let’s Resume Her Fight
This May Day, in a moment of resurgent child labor, let’s take time to remember and be inspired by Mother Jones.
![Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders waits to deliver the Republican response to the State of the Union address by President Joe Biden on February 7, 2023, in Little Rock, Arkansas.](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2023/04/2023_0424-sarah-huckabee-sanders-400x300.jpg)
Bills Enabling Child Labor Can Be Traced to This One Conservative Lobbying Group
The Foundation for Government Accountability has backed bills to expand child labor in at least three states.
![](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2023/04/SEG1-migrant-children-NYT-400x300.jpg)
Officials Ignored Repeated Warnings About Migrant Children Being Used for Labor
“People were punished for bringing this to the attention of their supervisors,” says reporter Hannah Dreier.
![An illustration of a child cleaning what looks to be an endless pool of blood from a floor, within which the Republican Party logo is reflected.](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2023/04/2023_0404-gop-child-labor-400x300.jpg)
The Party of “Family Values” Sees No Irony in Axing Child Labor Protections
The Republican Party is embracing policies that roll back a century of child labor protections.
![The Iowa State Capitol Building is pictured at sunrise in Des Moines, Iowa.](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2023/04/2023_0404-iowa-state-capitol-400x300.jpg)
Report: Iowa GOP’s Child Labor Bill Was Spearheaded by Restaurant Lobbyists
An Iowa lobbyist appeared to outright admit that the state’s child labor bill was written by the restaurant lobby.
![A charcoal illustration of a sad child wearing a miner's hat and carrying a pickaxe](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2023/03/2023_0321-child-labor-400x300.jpg)
Child Labor Is on the Rise as Republicans See an Answer to Labor Shortages
Anti-immigrant policies and spiraling rates of poverty are driving thousands of children into the U.S. labor market.
![The Tony Downs Food Company in Madelia, Minnesota, is pictured on Google Street View.](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2023/03/2023_0317-tony-downs-meat-400x300.jpg)
Kids Found to Be Working Overnight Shifts at Minnesota Meat Processing Plant
Investigators discovered children as young as 14 years working overnight shifts at the Tony Downs Food Company.
![A young girl wearing a face mask walks on the National Mall near the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC on March 8, 2021.](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2023/03/GettyImages-1231605805-400x300.jpg)
US Corporations Are Bringing Back Child Labor, With Help From GOP Lawmakers
Rather than offering wages attractive to adults, employers want lawmakers to push teens into dangerous jobs.
![Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders waits to deliver the Republican response to the State of the Union address by President Joe Biden on February 7, 2023, in Little Rock, Arkansas.](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2023/03/2023_0308-sarah-huckabee-sanders-400x300.jpg)
Arkansas Governor Signs Bill Making It Easier to Violate Child Labor Laws
The bill comes as child labor violations are on the rise across the U.S.
![Migrant Kids in the US Are Forced Into Dangerous Jobs for Major Brands](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2023/02/Seg1-Dreier-Times-Split-400x300.jpg)
Migrant Kids in the US Are Forced Into Dangerous Jobs for Major Brands
The Biden administration on Monday announced it would crack down on the use of migrant child labor in the U.S.