Child Labor Creeps into Today’s Life in Cuba
“Although nobody wants to say it out loud”
The Communist Party Las Tunas provincial newspaper claims that cases in the province are few and that there is no “crisis.”
HAVANA TIMES – Sharply, but cautiously, Periódico 26 admits: “Although one might not want to say it out loud, child labor exists in Las Tunas.” The statement is part of a lengthy report, published this Friday in the Communist Party newspaper in that province, in which complicit parents and exploited children appear, and in which there is only one “hero”: the authorities.
“Addressing this issue doesn’t mean there’s a crisis in Las Tunas,” the newspaper insists from the outset, but the testimonies it gathers show a different reality. The article begins with the story of Pablo, a 16-year-old boy who works as a coal miner, even though the law sets the starting age at 17.
In his case, the problem isn’t the months separating him from legality, but the fact that “he learned the trade from the moment he opened his eyes.” Now, it’s “the main source of income that puts the food on the table” in his house.
His story is one of the most common. Families, driven by poverty, allow and sometimes encourage children to take up a job that can contribute to the family economy, even without knowing they are committing a crime, explains Daisy Torres Alvarez, chief prosecutor of the Family Protection Department.
Not all cases, however, are so “innocent.” “It’s shocking and outrageous that behind the little boy who sells bread in the neighborhood is a 35-year-old mother, physically and mentally fit, who lives off the ’invention’ because she can’t find a job and prefers to ’starve to death’ rather than work for the state,” the newspaper criticizes.
In recent years, the presence of teenagers on the streets selling everything from food to electronics has raised a certain amount of alarm, the authorities acknowledge. “It’s good for children to be hardworking and diligent from an early age but be careful. A few days ago, I came across a little boy on the street selling tamarinds with his mother. That’s child labor,” warns Juan Miguel Barrios, deputy director general of education in the province.
In any case, although poverty reigns supreme on the island, authorities maintain that families are primarily responsible for caring for their children.
“Some parents have allowed themselves to be dragged down by the shortcomings and complexities, but there’s no need to drop out of school or have children with work obligations,” the judge argues. In their favor, she adds, parents have the support of the State, which guarantees financial assistance for families in similar situations. However, even Periódico 26 is aware of the Cuban government’s limitations and offers a caution: “We know, it’s not an amount that will make all hardship disappear, but it does alleviate it.”
The authorities claim to have everything under control and have found a solution for each case, even if it’s often not ideal: “There were some teenagers who didn’t go to school because they had to help their families with the farm, and we met with the parents, agreed on days and times, and they returned to classes. Everyone wins.”
For readers who found the article on Facebook, the situation doesn’t seem as ideal as the media outlet claims. “And the children in Havana begging for money at traffic lights. There’s one every day at the 124th St. in Marianao. The children in Old Havana begging tourists for money. Oh, and if they notice the girls who are prostitutes. It’s horrible. How far will we go? They’ve had to grow up too fast,” laments one commenter at the bottom of the post.
Others took their criticism further: “ Periódico 26, better that you say that as a society we’re swimming in shit. So, I ask myself, what kind of financial aid is supposedly being provided? How can you talk about the education system when classes often aren’t even held due to a lack of teachers”?
This is not the first time the official press has discussed child labor on the island. In June 2024, Sierra Maestra published a note acknowledging its existence and attributing it to the “complexity of the country’s economic context.”
Before the government’s attention, independent media had already focused on the problem, which is often disguised as “housework” and minor responsibilities that children are given at the social and family levels, even though they are not appropriate for their age.
Barely a month after the Sierra Maestra report, 14ymedio reported on the appearance of children begging for food or alms in the doorways of restaurants and stores in Havana and Holguin. A look at these cases, or any of those reported by Periódico 26, reveals the connection between children forced into the labor market and a country where poverty is rampant.
Translated by Translating Cuba.
Child labour or child slaves is a much worse in many other poor and or corrupt countries than Cuba. That is we need the people of Cuba need major economic reform not to become a puppet of a U S gov like Trump and large business
I beg the gov of Cuba to work with good countries like Denmark China Japan maybe become a alliance with Canada for free movement of goods and people and run away from trade with the United States
While the term “child labour” often evokes disturbing images – children chained to posts, working in slave-like conditions for little or no pay – the reality is often far more complex and deserves thoughtful context. In many countries, child labour is a double-edged sword. As noted in the article, there are situations where a child is the only member of the family able to earn an income. Without their contribution, the entire household may face hunger or destitution. This is a harsh reality in parts of Africa and elsewhere.
On one hand, children deserve the right to a carefree childhood free from grueling labour and filled with opportunities for education. On the other hand, we should not automatically condemn all forms of work involving children. Assisting a parent in selling goods at a market, or helping out on a family farm, can instill valuable life lessons. These experiences not only build practical skills but also foster entrepreneurship, responsibility, and resilience. Many successful businesspeople, in fact, got their start working alongside their parents in childhood.
The issue is not so much work itself, but rather the conditions under which it happens. Child labour becomes problematic, and indeed exploitative, when it interferes with education, places the child in dangerous environments, or occurs against their will. In such cases, it veers into the territory of child slavery.
Before rushing to judgment, we must assess each situation on its own merits. Work can be beneficial for children, when it supports their development rather than deprives them of their future.