Nevertheless, some would argue that child labour is both a cause and a consequence of poverty. Work that ruins children's health or that denies them the chance to receive an education certainly makes it more likely that they will stay poor in the future. To break this vicious circle, increasing emphasis is put on education as the most effective way to combat child labour. The question is whether it is more effective to eradicate all forms of child labour immediately by compulsory education. The alternative is to pursue a double track policy, namely to simultaneously abolish the extreme forms of child labour and to offer education besides children's work.
Opinions are divided.
At the national level, the use of child labour in great numbers slows down economic growth and social development. Child labour that hampers school attendance is also in conflict with the UN convention entitled the Right of the Child. The ILO Minimum Age Convention No. 138 explicitly links the minimum age for admission to employment with the age of completion of compulsory schooling. Many employers see that children are a cheap and docile labour force. Furthermore, child labour drives down adult wage levels, impoverishing families and keeping families under- or unemployed.