"From Dickensian exploitation of orphans to the after-school jobs of American students, child labor continues to generate controversy. Based on eight years of research, a new reference work now surveys this important subject from the beginning of the Industrial Revolution to the present, taking it beyond the usual Third World confines. Child Labor offers a wealth of valuable insights and information as it looks at traditional children's occupations, from chimney sweeps in Victorian Britain to kid actors in TV commercials; offers testimonies of famous as well as unknown child workers; analyzes the problems and psychological and social development of working children; presents overviews of child labor in specific countries and world regions; focuses on economic and technological issues affecting underage workers, such as globalization; surveys strategies to control and eliminate child labor; examines organizations concerned with child workers and associations of child workers themselves; spotlights individuals devoted to improving the welfare of working children; and analyzes how various governments, private organizations, and courts have dealt with child labor." "Consult this handy work when you need accurate and up-to-date information on such subjects as the effects of work on children's education, the economic forces driving the exploitation of minors, campaigns and legislation against child employment, how the nineteenth-century English Factory Act was often circumvented, and more. The alphabetical entries are also referenced by category, and there are many citations of contemporary books and studies on specific subjects."--Jacket.