Refiners May Benefit from Children’s Hazardous Work in Artisanal Gold Mines

International gold refiners who use gold from Ghana may be benefitting from hazardous child labor in unlicensed mines, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today on the eve of World Day Against Child Labor, June 12, 2015. The refiners should take immediate steps to eliminate child labor in their supply chains.
The 82-page report, “Precious Metal, Cheap Labor: Child Labor and Corporate Responsibility in Ghana’s Artisanal Gold Mines,” documents the use of child labor in Ghana’s artisanal, or unlicensed, mines, where most mining takes place. It is estimated that thousands of children work in hazardous conditions in violation of Ghanaian and international law. They pull the gold ore out of shafts, carry and crush loads of ore, and process it with toxic mercury. Most child laborers are between the ages of 15 and 17, but younger children also work in Ghana’s mines.
http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/2015/06/refiners-may-benefit-from-childrens-hazardous-work-in-artisanal-gold-mines/