Child Labor - Attendance
Contemporary Child Labor and Declining School Attendance in the U.S.
Abstract
The United States has experienced a 400% increase in reported child labor violations over the past decade, coinciding with declines in K-12 school attendance and enrollment. We examine the causal relationships between these patterns with microdata from the American Community Survey (ACS) from 2005 to 2023. Using a shift-share instrumental variable approach, our findings show that increased local demand for illegal child labor leads to higher youth employment in high-violation industries, longer work hours, and lower school attendance, particularly among Black youth and youth living on farms. A 10-percentage-point increase in the local share of employment in high child labor violation industries leads to a 7-percentage-point decline in public school attendance for children and youth aged 6 to 17. Results underscore the need to reevaluate labor protections and strengthen enforcement to prevent economic pressures from pulling vulnerable, young students away from school.
Citation
Sorensen, Lucy C., Melissa Arnold Lyon, Ji Hyun Byeon, and Stephen B. Holt. (2025). Contemporary Child Labor and Declining School Attendance in the U.S.. (EdWorkingPaper: 25-1302). Retrieved from Annenberg Institute at Brown University: https://doi.org/10.26300/hbcw-xc84