A New Child Labor Crisis in America

Slaughterhouses, construction sites, factories. A Times investigation has found that migrant children have been thrust into jobs in some of the most demanding workplaces in the United States.

How did this crisis in child labor develop? And now that it has been exposed, what is being done to tackle the problem?

Guest: Hannah Dreier, an investigative reporter for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• The shadow work force of migrant children extends across industries in every state, flouting labor laws that have been in place for nearly a century.
• As lawmakers clamor for action, federal and state enforcement agencies have begun a crackdown on companies that employ children.
• The Biden administration has announced a wide crackdown on the labor exploitation of migrant children around the United States.

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.