Child-and-adult-labour-in-the-export-oriented-garment-and-gem-polishing-industry-of-India

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Child and adult labour in the gem polishing export industry of Jaipur
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children to have the same low-paid job as themselves but soon earn a high wage'. The latter reason
came from children whose parents had lower-paid jobs which were not related to the
industry, like fruit-seller, rickshaw-puller or tailor. The majority of the children had unemployed
mothers who were illiterate. There were also working children of whom both the parents were
unemployed. These children earned all the family income. (It has to be studied, however, how
many parents of working children in Jaipur are unemployed and what exact number of children
contribute to the family income).
Thus, though the tradition of transferring skills from father to son still continues today, also
parents with other professions, send their children to the industry. These parents saw the gem
polishing industry as the best employer with good prospects and higher wages than other manual
labour 161 .
The majority of the interviewed children came from families with 5 to 9 children. When the
number of girl children was found higher in these families the income from the boy child was
very much needed and therefore they sent him to work. The girl child's income was even more
needed when some of her brothers were going to school or, in other cases, when all her brothers
still worked in the gem polishing industry without getting paid. The girl child, who stays inside
the house, is very easily 'used' and 'exploited' as a source of income and as a help in the household.
Sometimes children said that 'they had no interest in education and that they were more interested
in the work'. After having talked longer and more thoroughly with these children it became clear
that their statements were more the wish of their fathers who wanted them to work. It became
clear that these children had to obey their father. Later these children said that they would prefer
going to a government school during the day.
'Poverty of the parents' was among the reasons why children were sent to work, but it seemed that
the majority of the reasons mentioned had more to do with the attitude of the parents. None of the
child labourers of whom the parents were unemployed or had the lowest paid jobs which are not
related to the industry, stated that lack of family income (i.e. poverty) was the reason why they
went to work. It was not possible to find out the level of the family income, due to the wide range
of earnings of the family members. The child labourers did not always know these incomes
either. It was assumed that the family income of the parents who did not work in the gem
polishing industry was lower than the family income of the parents who did work in the industry.
(The gem polishing industry is the highest paid in Jaipur).
Opinion of working children on child labour
Though the children often said that they did not like the work, they indicated that they 'had to
abide by their parents wish'. The interviewed children preferred going to school, which would
give them better job opportunities later in life. But their parents did not allow them.
Most of the children had the following idea of child labour: 'If they become fathers themselves
161 Nisha Lal, 1992, ibid, p. 92.