Child Labour in Hotels / Restaurents and Local Tea Shops (A Case Study of Damak Municipality, Jhapa)

Abstract

Employing the children in Hotels/ Restaurants and Local tea shops for labour is common in the urban areas of Nepal which hinders the future of the children. The present study concerns withthe Child labours employed in Hotels / Restaurants and Local tea–shops of Damak Municipality of Jhapa District. The present study draws the information mainly about the socio-economic condition of children working in Hotels / Restaurants and Local tea – shops, their working condition and problems faced by them. Different research methodologies have been used to achieve the main objectives of this study. Although the nature of this study is of exploratory very little is known about the working condition of child labour. This study on child labours in Hostels / Restaurants and local tea shops o fDamak Municipality of Jhapa District, which is located in the eastern part of the country. Different types of quantitative and qualitative data and information have been collected and analyzed in this study. Primary data were labours of Hotels / Restaurants and Local tea–shop during field visit. In this qualitative analysis of this available data is done. Existing rules and regulations,available documents and studies related to the child labour were reviewed. The nature of this study is basically descriptive and exploratory. Simple Statistical tools like measure of percentage have been used to present data, which have enabled to present a Scenario of the reveling condition of child labour. The child employed in Hotels/Restaurants and local teashops in common in the study area.Most of the child labours were migrant. The child laboures come from almost all parts of the country having their origin in terms of development region, representing almost all castes and ethnic groups. Majority of the respondents had one of their parents. About half of the children are of age group 10-14 years. About 64 percent of child laboureers come from the family without own land. Those children who come from the family without land (36percent) have insufficient for the survival. Most of the child labours had worked previously indifferent sectors. About 41 percent of children come from the agriculture family by their occupation. Majority of children and their parents seem to deprived of education. About61 percent of children are illiterate. Nearly 46 percent of child labour had left the school due to poverty, 26percent had left school due to death of parents, 14 percent due to negligence of and 7 percent due to personal will. Extreme household poverty is the leading cause for being child labour, however the reare also other immediate cause such as death of earning family members, failed in school, peerpressure and growing consumerism. All the child labour was found working on temporary basis and in lowsalary basis. The study shows that majority of child labours support their family. Almost 4 all the child laboures work more than 12 hours per day. Among them 5 percent work less than 8hours, 18 percent were for 8-11 hours, 77 percent work for more then 12hours per day. Most of the child labours got same food as employer but 25 percent take different but sufficient. More than 50percent of child labour was found that they had suffered from some sort of diseases in the past. The reasons for the dissatisfaction of the child labour was found to be low salary to much work, no of ftime, scolding by employer etc. Where as the existing law does not allow to employ the children for working more than 6 hours per day.