Kongreso Ng Mga Empleyado ng Pilipinas Inc. (Empleyado), a local child labor prevention organization, participated in yesterday’s “Walk for a Cause-Para sa Batang Manggagawa” in Bacolod City, an event of the Department Labor and Employment (DOLE) that seeks to end the practice of child labor.
The event culminated with a commitment signing at the Onyok Velasco Gym in Bacolod City.
Aside from Empleyado, also joining the event were various schools, other organizations, and the Philippine National Police.
Earlier this year, a Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) report showed the Philippines has seen a drastic decline in child labor from the 2.316 million reported in 2007 to 1.344 million in 2017.
The youngest demographic, those aged between five and nine years old, saw the largest drop, falling 52.5 percent from approximately 120,000 to around 57,000.
According to a DOLE order, child labor is defined as any work performed by a child that subjects them to any form of exploitation or is harmful to their health and safety or physical, mental, or psychosocial development.
Last year, the Department of Interior and Local Government-Region VI named La Castellana among the “Most Child Friendly” local government units.
La Castellana Mayor Rhumyla Nicor-Mangilimutan noted the town’s reduction in child labor, health services for children, and daycare feeding program./WDJ