2007年-世界发展银行全球_Analyzing_the_Impact_of_Legislation_on_Child_Labor_in_Pakistan_45页_426kb

Summary of "Analyzing the Impact of Legislation on Child Labor in Pakistan"

Core Content

This working paper by Tazeen Fasih analyzes the impact of the Employment of Children Act (EoCA) 1991 on child labor in Pakistan using a regression discontinuity design (RDD). The study focuses on the immediate effect of the law, which prohibits the employment of children under 14 years of age in non-agricultural and non-household sectors, and investigates how the law influenced the labor participation rates of children in the months following its implementation.

Main Views and Key Findings

• Legal Context: The EoCA 1991 was the most comprehensive child labor law in Pakistan, prohibiting the employment of children under 14 in hazardous and specific occupations. It also introduced stricter penalties for violations compared to previous labor laws, such as imprisonment or fines.

• Objective: The paper aims to assess the effectiveness of the EoCA 1991 in reducing child labor using a quasi-experimental approach. It leverages the timing of the law's implementation (April 1991) to create a natural experiment, comparing child labor trends before and after the law was introduced.

• Data and Methodology:

  • The study uses micro-level data from the Pakistan Integrated Household Survey 1991 (PIHS 1991).
  • It applies a difference-in-difference (DiD) estimator to compare the employment rates of children in the pre- and post-implementation periods.
  • The RDD is used to identify the discontinuity in employment rates at the age of 14, which is the minimum legal working age under the EoCA.

• Key Results:

  • There is statistically significant evidence that the EoCA 1991 reduced the employment of children aged 13 years in the post-implementation period.
  • For most other ages, there was an increase in employment rates, but this was not statistically significant.
  • There was a slight decrease in employment rates for 10-year-old boys and 14-year-old girls.
  • The agriculture sector was not affected by the EoCA, which explains the seasonal fluctuations in employment rates.
  • The manufacturing sector showed a reduction in child employment after the law's implementation.
  • The sectoral distribution of child labor changed in both rural and urban areas, with a decrease in non-agricultural sectors and an increase in agriculture in rural areas.

• Methodological Notes:

  • The DiD estimator is used to estimate the causal effect of the law by comparing the change in employment probability between the treatment and control groups.
  • The logit model is preferred over linear regression for dichotomous dependent variables (i.e., employment status).
  • The interaction term $D_t * AGE_i$ in the model captures the causal effect of the EoCA on child labor.

• Context and Implications:

  • The EoCA 1991 was implemented in a context where child labor was widespread and labor laws were weak.
  • The effectiveness of the law is attributed to the prohibition of child employment in certain sectors and the increased penalties for violations.
  • The study highlights that legislation alone may not be sufficient without proper implementation and monitoring.
  • The results suggest that the law had a limited but measurable impact, especially on children just below the legal working age.

Conclusion

The Employment of Children Act 1991 in Pakistan had a positive but limited effect on reducing child labor, particularly for children aged 13 years. The study demonstrates that legislation can influence child labor when implemented with clear age boundaries and strict enforcement. However, the effectiveness of the law is also contingent on societal attitudes and economic conditions, as the impact was not uniform across all age and gender groups. The findings contribute to the broader understanding of how child labor laws can be used to improve schooling outcomes and reduce child labor in developing countries.