Always spray… I think they said, against the wind? Like toward where the wind was blowing. Yeah, where the wind was blowing.”201 Pesticide training for child workers is especially important because, as one public health study found, “Young people are generally less experienced and assertive than adults, and thus they may not question assignments that place them at risk for pesticide exposure.”202
Inadequate Access to Water, Sanitation, and Shade Many children interviewed by Human Rights Watch said that their employers did not provide drinking water for workers, and most children stated that employers did not provide handwashing facilities or toilets for workers. Many reported that they did not have a place to shelter in shade during the workday.
Problems with Drinking Water Most children interviewed by Human Rights Watch stated that the labor contractor or tobacco grower for whom they worked provided them with water. Alicia K., 15, is a 9th grade student and a seasonal tobacco worker in eastern North Carolina. She described a situation that was common among children interviewed by Human Rights Watch: “He [the contractor] gave us lots of water breaks. The contractor had a cooler with water and soda. My mom also carried a cooler with water.”203 However, some children told Human Rights Watch that the water provided by employers was not clean or drinkable. Nicholas V., a 14-year-old worker in North Carolina said, “The manager brought water to the fields, but it tasted strongly of chemicals. I brought my own, or we’d go to the gas station nearby.”204 Natalie G. also described problems with the water provided by her employer in North Carolina: “They would give us water. It was in a big round orange cooler. But it didn’t really taste right, and when we opened the top we saw that there were leaves and dirt in it. We never drank that water.”205
201 Human Rights Watch interview with Alberto H., 16, Doug S., 17, and Damian W., 17, Wayne County, Kentucky, September 3, 2013. 202
Geoffrey M. Calvert et al., “Acute Pesticide-Related Illnesses Among Working Youths, 1988–1999,” American Journal of
Public Health, vol. 93, no. 4 (April 2003), p. 608. 203 Human Rights Watch interview with Alicia K., 15, Lenoir County, North Carolina, May 15, 2013. 204 Human Rights Watch interview with Nicholas V., 14, Lenoir County, North Carolina, May 18, 2013. 205 Human Rights Watch interview with Natalie G., 18, Lenoir County, North Carolina, May 18, 2013.
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HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH | MAY 2014