The Centre in the ARD Bayerischer Rundfunk Podcast Series: „Kinderarbeit – Bei Uns Doch Nicht!“

The Centre’s CEO Ines Kaempfer was recently featured in the podcast by the Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), a member organisation of the popular German broadcaster ARD. “Kinderarbeit – Bei Uns Doch Nicht!” is a three-part series that looks back on the history of child labour in Germany, as illustrated through the real-life story of Gertraud Seidl. The series highlights how child labour is not a recent phenomenon but one that nonetheless has a lasting impact that spans to this day. 

"The numbers have worsened again in the past few years; this is a development we can clearly see in the USA, but also in European countries," Ines says in Episode 1, while highlighting how financial constraints are the key driver of child labour.

Series summary

Gertraud Seidl from near Augsburg is proud: she is four years old and is finally allowed to go to the pasture and help her sisters herd the cows. But it doesn't stop there. On her parents' farm in the 1950s, there is so much to do that she has little time left for playing and school. Yet, nothing brings her as much joy as reading and learning. When she is in eighth grade, her parents make a fateful decision behind her back. 

Child labour was an issue in Germany for longer than most people think: until the 1980s, many children here still had to work hard, even when laws against it had long been in place.

• Click here to listen to Episode 1

• Click here to listen to Episode 2

• Click here to listen to Episode 3

Please note, this podcast is available in German only.