Update on The Centre’s Work to Tackle Child Rights Risks in Supply Chains in the United States

138 million children are estimated to be in child labour worldwide, according to the latest estimates by the ILO and UNICEF. While most child labour occurs in low-income countries, the US has seen a significant rise in child labour in recent years. The U.S. Department of Labour reported a 31% increase in the number of children found working in violation of federal child labour laws between 2019 and 2024. The Centre’s field assessments in the US confirm these findings.

During these assessments, we found a severe shortage of organisations actively addressing the issue of child labour or capable of remediating cases, although its existence is an open secret. While many nonprofits offer related services such as housing, legal aid, or education, very few have direct experience dealing with child labour issues. To make matters worse, funding for social services, including healthcare and refugee resettlement, has been cut, resulting in fewer safety nets available for at-risk children.

To tackle child labour risks, US brands must apply a comprehensive vision across their supply chains that emphasises understanding of the risk, human rights due diligence (HRDD), transparency, supplier engagement and remediation. This vision is aimed at reducing child labour risks and compliance. The Centre’s collaboration with AIM-Progress to develop a nationwide child labour remediation network is one of the initiatives to date aimed at achieving this vision. This specific project focuses on mapping and assessing local capacity in two states in the Midwest to deal with child labour remediation.

Seven US brands and their supply chains have collaborated with us to date. Continue reading below to discover what we have accomplished so far or contact us to learn more.

Child Rights Risks and Impact Assessments

To date, The Centre has facilitated 24 child rights and human rights risk and impact assessments across 17 states in the US. In addition to that, we have also engaged with more than 75 organisations to identify child labour hotspots and explore local solutions to support remediation efforts, including access to decent work for youth. These assessments are designed to identify risks of child labour and other rights violations throughout supply chains by employing a standardised approach and methodology that provides a clear overview of where actual and potential risks may be found, along with concrete suggestions on how to implement changes that create a positive impact while respecting the need for long-term business-friendly solutions. These assessments include:

• On-site visits, management interviews, focus group discussions with workers, one-on-one interviews, and consultations with key stakeholders

• Reports containing risk matrices that assist brands in implementing time-bound action plans to address identified risks

• Child Labour Prevention and Remediation Training

When child labour is found in the supply chain, we develop a remediation plan for the child and offer specialised training for brands and their suppliers to prevent its recurrence. Our training includes raising awareness about child labour and children’s rights, promoting responsible recruitment practices to stakeholders, teaching effective age verification methods, and emphasising the value of decent work for youth and how to manage them as a key strategy to combat child labour. 700 supply chain managers in the United States have been trained on child labour prevention and remediation via The Centre’s digital learning programme.

HRDD Consultation and Working Group

We provide consultation services to brands and buyers in the United States, advising them on assessing and mitigating child labour risks. In the four years we have operated in the United States, we have reviewed and provided suggestions for improving 80 child labour policies and procedures for brands and their lower tiers to ensure a robust response to child labour prevention and remediation. Through this work, we are also building a multi-stakeholder initiative focused on child rights through two working groups in collaboration with Cargill and the Rural Education & Workforce Alliance (REWA). The working groups unite local businesses, civil society organisations, and other key stakeholders to drive positive change for children and youth in the local communities of Virginia and Kansas.

Leveraging over a decade of global expertise, we provide tailored solutions to clients in the US, including policy and procedure review and development, risk assessments and capacity-building, and developing sustainable remediation systems that prioritise the best interest of the children. Brands that proactively address these risks will benefit from increased value creation, supply chain stability, an enhanced reputation, reduced legal exposure, and the ability to foster long-term, sustainable supply chain relationships.

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