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Do international labor standards contribute to the persistence of the child-labor problem?

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  • Matthias Doepke

  • Fabrizio Zilibotti

Abstract

In recent years, a number of governments and consumer groups in rich countries have tried to discourage the use of child labor in poor countries through measures such as product boycotts and the imposition of international labor standards. The purported objective of such measures is to reduce the incidence of child labor in developing countries and thereby improve children's welfare. In this paper, we examine the effects of such policies from a political-economy perspective. We show that these types of international action on child labor tend to lower domestic political support within developing countries for banning child labor. Hence, international labor standards and product boycotts may delay the ultimate eradication of child labor.
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Suggested Citation

  • Matthias Doepke & Fabrizio Zilibotti, 2010. "Do international labor standards contribute to the persistence of the child-labor problem?," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 15(1), pages 1-31, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jecgro:v:15:y:2010:i:1:p:1-31
    DOI: 10.1007/s10887-009-9048-8
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    Blog mentions

    As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:
    1. One more argument against banning child labor
      by Economic Logician in Economic Logic on 2009-08-13 19:47:00

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    Cited by:

    1. Irving Rosales, 2013. "Learn, sweat or steal: a theory of development and the activity of children," Working Papers 0613, Universidad Iberoamericana, Department of Economics.
    2. Doepke, M. & Tertilt, M., 2016. "Families in Macroeconomics," Handbook of Macroeconomics, in: J. B. Taylor & Harald Uhlig (ed.), Handbook of Macroeconomics, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 0, pages 1789-1891, Elsevier.
    3. Francisco Gonzalez & Irving Rosales, 2016. "The case against child labor bans," Working Papers 1601, University of Waterloo, Department of Economics, revised Jan 2016.
    4. Ghulam Abid & Binish Khan & Zeeshan Rafiq & Alia Ahmed, 2015. "Child Trade-Off Theory: A Theoretical Discussion on the Structure, Causes, Consequences and Eradication of Child Labor," Bulletin of Business and Economics (BBE), Research Foundation for Humanity (RFH), vol. 4(1), pages 24-34, March.
    5. Alonso Alfaro-Ureña & Benjamin Faber & Cecile Gaubert & Isabela Manelici & José Pablo Vásquez-Carvajal, 2023. "Responsible Sourcing? Theory and evidence from Costa Rica," Documentos de Trabajo 2305, Banco Central de Costa Rica.
    6. Maria Micaela Sviatschi, 2022. "Making a NARCO: Childhood Exposure to Illegal Labor Markets and Criminal Life Paths," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 90(4), pages 1835-1878, July.
    7. Congdon Fors, Heather, 2024. "Child Labour Background, Challenges, and the Role of Research in Achieving Sustainable Development Goal 8.7," Working Papers in Economics 840, University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics.
    8. Heather Congdon Fors, 2014. "Social Globalization and Child Labor: A Cross-country Analysis," The Developing Economies, Institute of Developing Economies, vol. 52(2), pages 125-153, June.
    9. Heather Congdon Fors, 2012. "Child Labour: A Review Of Recent Theory And Evidence With Policy Implications," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(4), pages 570-593, September.
    10. Dimova, Ralitza, 2021. "The Political Economy of Child Labor," GLO Discussion Paper Series 816, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    11. Michele Di Maio & Giorgio Fabbri, 2013. "Consumer boycott, household heterogeneity, and child labor," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 26(4), pages 1609-1630, October.
    12. Holger Strulik, 2013. "School Attendance And Child Labor—A Model Of Collective Behavior," Journal of the European Economic Association, European Economic Association, vol. 11(2), pages 246-277, April.
    13. Soumya Sahin & Ambar Nath Ghosh, 2016. "Effect of Ban on Exports Containing Child Labour in a Dynamic Model in Presence of Imperfect Monitoring," Foreign Trade Review, , vol. 51(1), pages 26-45, February.
    14. Congdon Fors, Heather, 2012. "Social Globalization and Child Labor," Working Papers in Economics 533, University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics.

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    JEL classification:

    • J20 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - General
    • J88 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Standards - - - Public Policy
    • O10 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - General

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