Child labor in the U.S. has made headlines in recent months: a labor department investigation showed about 30 minors who cleaned meatpacking plants overnight, and a bombshell New York Times story detailed child laborers across the supply chain.
Along with the anecdotes, data seems to support a trend: Over the past several years, the U.S. Department of Labor has recorded more and more cases with child labor violations.
In the 1990s and early 2000s, the labor department recorded a high number of cases with child labor violations, but then the figures fell, data shows. But, between 2015 and 2022, the number of cases grew more than 50%.
In summer 2022, in response to the increase, the labor department announced it would step up its enforcement of child labor laws. This included tens of thousands of dollars in penalties.
