Italian
On the occasion of the International Day against Child Labour, celebrated yesterday, June 12, the National Coordination of Teachers of Human Rights discipline intends to renew its commitment and draw attention to the phenomenon, still too widespread even in our country.
ITALY. In 2025, there are nearly 81,000 teenagers aged 15 to 17 involved in work activities. This number has shown a steady increase in recent years, rising from 51,845 in 2021 to 78,530 in 2023, and reaching 80,991 in 2024. This trend reflects a structural discomfort that affects various territorial and social contexts, particularly penalizing the most vulnerable groups of the youth population.
The phenomenon is particularly marked in some areas of the country: in Trentino-Alto Adige it is estimated that over one in five young people between the ages of 15 and 17 are engaged in some form of work, while in Valle d’Aosta the percentage is close to 15%. Abruzzo, Marche, Puglia, and Sardegna also exceed the national average, which stands at 4.5%. Behind these numbers lie often invisible stories, where work does not represent a formative opportunity, but rather an obstacle to growth and education.
Equally alarming are the safety data. In 2023 alone, there were nearly 19,000 reports of injuries among 15 to 17-year-olds, with six fatal cases in the last five years. The most affected sectors – agriculture, catering, construction – often lack adequate training for risk prevention, turning early work into a real threat to the physical well-being of young people.
The consequences on an educational level are equally evident: around 58,000 adolescents between the ages of 14 and 15 have worked before the legal age, often in conditions that hinder or interrupt their educational path. In many cases, work becomes synonymous with dropping out, especially where the family context fails to provide adequate educational and cultural support. Economic poverty thus merges with educational poverty, in a vicious circle that limits future prospects.
The National Coordination of Teachers of Human Rights emphasizes that addressing the issue of child labor cannot be reduced to a mere annual recurrence. A structural intervention involving schools, families, associations, and the world of work is necessary. Only through effective policies, precise monitoring, investments in education, and a greater culture of legality will it be possible to restore to young people the right to grow, learn, and build a future free from forced precocity.
For these reasons, the Coordination appeals to the Minister of Education and Merit, Prof. Giuseppe Valditara, to urgently launch a national awareness and training campaign in secondary schools, aimed at combating child labor through education on human rights, school guidance, and strengthening the presence of schools in the areas most exposed to the risk of abandonment and exploitation. It is essential that the Italian school system becomes an increasingly active guardian of legality, social justice, and child protection, starting from educational and social peripheries.
Yesterday’s International Day Against Child Labour cannot remain a symbolic event. Instead, it must represent a starting point for a daily and shared commitment to safeguarding the fundamental rights of children and adolescents.
