‘The unnatural parents’

There is something lightening and uplifting about the laughter of children. It makes you want to laugh as well even if you do not even know what they’re laughing about. But bring that infectious laughter, added with running about in the narrow corridors and spaces in the workplace, and you will instantly get mixed reviews from those working.

When stress-tested about that juggernaut of joy and annoyance, it may be a good time to pull out a quote that says “Children are not a distraction from more important work. They are the most important work.” (C.S.Lewis)

In the real, not-so-feel-good world, sometimes, children work or are made to work. With zero knowledge about their rights, and with very meager power to complain, they are easily exploited, without even knowing what the word exploitation means.

Local laws were passed since decades ago to set rules for working children. It is worth knowing that the rule is that children below 15 years of age cannot be employed – except if they work for their parents. And if they do work at that age, they cannot be breadwinners. Only a maximum of 20 percent of their income can be used to support the family. The rest should be for them and even 30 percent must be placed in a trust fund.

The rules have been relaxed for the entertainment industry where employment of children is allowed even if the parents do not own the company that signs up the child.

Laws did not have to be too clear or express to arouse sensitivities. Do you remember the pulling down of a liquor product billboard ad that provocatively asked: “Have you tasted a 15-year-old?” It may be a case of “Is it a legal question or a moral question?” but it went into litigation. And you will easily recall the noontime show where the host asked the boy to repeat a sexy dance move and he got into really hot water for that. In the opinion of netizens, “in the name of entertainment” was no excuse.

The bar of awareness and protection has now levelled up as international organizations like UNICEF, Save the Children, and Global Compact have issued a set of 10 principles to protect children. Called the “Children’s Rights and Business Principles,” these weigh on the shoulders of private businesses. PwC is helping UNICEF provide the training on transforming this perspective to policy.

The environment, governance, human rights, and now this special segment on the rights of children are expected to be espoused by corporations. Perhaps it is a real-life adaptation of the line “With great power comes great responsibility.” This, I may say, had made businesses the unnatural parents, fostering the rights of the children, and making children the ultimate stakeholder. It seems business leaders have expanded parental responsibility.

Businesses’ moral obligation using global standards goes way beyond legal responsibility. It is a human responsibility. That means they should be mindful of protecting children, and of being sensitive to the parents in their workforce. This could take on many forms, like giving longer maternal and paternal leaves, setting up breastfeeding rooms, or even playrooms, and possibly establishing a day care center in the office. Bigger companies are in an even better position to compel suppliers in their value chain to confirm their adoption of policies that are mindful of children’s rights.

In our country, there are successful companies who have been crossing the lines from success to making a difference by adopting global sustainability reporting on how they create impact on climate change, good governance, and human rights, including children’s rights. If you must know of examples, the Ayala and SM groups as well as PLDT are among them.

I am distracted while writing this piece with this Christmas song that goes: “Have yourself a merry little Christmas” and wondered why Christmas songs, even the happy ones, feel a bit sad. I realize it’s not that they are sad, but only sentimental – pretty much the same sentimentality we feel about children because we were all children once. Many of us today lived a poorer life when we were younger. But so long as our aspirations were not impoverished, we felt rich. It’s more than protection; it is the ambition that we can give to the youngest members to make them become the strongest among us, a few Christmases from now.

To all my readers, when the clock strikes 12 tonight, let us all feel the joy and the hope. Merry Christmas, everyone!