The Trade and Development Act (TDA)
On May 18, 2000, the President signed into law the Trade and Development Act (TDA). The TDA established a new eligibility criterion requiring that countries make efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labor for receipt of trade benefits under the Generalized System of Preferences program, the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act, the U.S.-Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act, and the Andean Trade Preference Act/Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act.
The TDA requires the Secretary of Labor to issue annual findings on beneficiary country initiatives to implement their international commitments to eliminate the worst forms of child labor. As a result of this requirement, the Department of Labor has published the Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor reportannually since 2002. The report covers 144 countries and territories and provides information on worst forms of child labor in goods and services, as well as information on country efforts, including laws, enforcement, policies and programs. The 2011 report introduced a new tool to assess government action to advance efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labor.
TDA Reports
Frequently Asked Questions
Submissions
The Office of Forced Labor, Child Labor and Human Trafficking is continuously collecting information and encourages submissions by national governments, international organizations, businesses and corporations, trade and workers' organizations, NGOs, academia, and the general public. We review all submissions as they are received. Submissions are welcome at any time.
To submit comments on or information for the TDA report, please email TDA-ILAB@dol.gov; fax to 202-693-4830; or mail to ILAB, U.S. Department of Labor, c/o OCFT Research and Policy Unit, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, S-5317, Washington, DC 20210.
