Effects of Work Related Factors to the Schooling, Health and Recreation of Filipino Children

Children in the labor force are a social phenomenon that has become link with the third world countries. The Philippines is one country in the developing regions where there are many children who are productively earning. The survey was conducted nationwide to collect data on the demographic and socio-economic characteristics of working children ages 5 to 17. In 1995 and 2001. Four  response variables (present  attendance in school, dropping  out  from   school,  effect  of  work  on  schooling  and  reasons  for  dropping  that  characterize education status  of working children were  modeled.  Results  in 1995 and in 2001 show that  the nature of employment, working days per week, normal working hours per week and doing heavy physical work affect school attendance. Factors    affecting schooling in 2001  are activity  during  free  time,  and  status  of  employment.  The  number    of  working  days and  hours  per  week, increases, the  odds of  dropping  out  from  school also increases. Factors  that   help  a  child to  stay  in  school  are    engagement  in  less  permanent job,  “boss” is  a  relative, less  exhausting work and does not  require  heavy  physical exertion, less activities that  the  child  do   during  his  free  time  as well as  when  he is  unpaid  worker.  The  health  of  working  children is affected most  when they  work in the  industrial  sector.  Factors that affect their recreation in 1995  are  long  working hours, absence of relative  supervisor on the job. Similarly, child workers in 2001   with long hours  of work affect their  recreation as well  as work that provides little  illumination.  Children working in farming, fishing, and mining have less free time  than those  children working  in other industries. However, regardless  where the child works it  reduces  the  playing  time since in  some cases  sleeping is  preferred  than playing.