Young Carers: Views on Child Labour and Family Caregiving: Children and Work Research Series - Session 8

This presentation will reflect upon the discourse of the global phenomenon known as "young carers" through the perspective of child labour and family care and caregiving. Young carers are children and young people who provide unpaid care, support, and assistance to disabled or ill family members and friends. Young carers typically provide a wide range of care : intimate, emotional, financial, and physical support, with many beginning their caring role during the early childhood years. The level of awareness, dedicated policy, and formal support varies across Europe, North America, and Asia—where the majority of research with young carers is conducted—however, young carers remain a generally hidden, underresearched, and underserved population of youth. Their contributions to family life are invaluable and the safety net of social care systems in many countries across the world, however the debate remains ongoing in respect to their position as child workers or simply "helpers" in the home. This presentation will offer critical rationales for examining the activities of young carers as "work" and the implications for global policy and practice.

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