Increased Electric Car Production Linked To More Child Labor In Mines
February 23, 2018
Congolese mines that use child labor may be benefitting from a global rise in demand for cobalt, a metal used in batteries for electric vehicles.
Cobalt is an essential component of lithium-ion batteries found in everything from electric vehicles to iPhones. The majority of the world’s supply of the metal comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo, where some small mines have been found to use child labor in dangerous conditions.