State Secretary Jurgen Nobel: “I understand that people enjoy getting a glimpse into the lives of others through social media. But this must not come at the expense of childrens well-being. Without stricter rules, modern child labor is lurking. We should not want that. Children should not be a revenue model. Better information is necessary, but not sufficient. Therefore, we are tightening the rules and will work on higher fines.”

Children in the online world need to be better protected to prevent abuses. Vlog families, where children often appear during their parents daily lives, can have many followers on online platforms such as YouTube and Instagram. Experts see risks for their mental well-being and healthy development, but there are also concerns about privacy and online misuse of childrens images.

Exemption Requirement

To better ensure the safety of children, Nobel will adjust the laws and regulations surrounding child labor to better respond to online developments. It is already mandatory to apply for an exemption if children appear in online videos with a clear commercial intent. For the Dutch Labor Inspectorate, this rule is difficult to enforce when the line between hobby and work is not always clear. There is also not always a clear employer-employee relationship. Therefore, the regulations will be tightened to prevent abuses. With the tightening, an exemption requirement will apply to parents of children in family vlogs where money is earned. If parents of child vloggers have an exemption requirement, better oversight of abuses can be ensured as they are also in view of the Labor Inspectorate. The parent can also be held responsible as the employer.

Fine Policy

Vlog families sometimes make large profits with their business, which can increase the commercial pressure on their children with all the associated risks. A fine for not complying with the exemption requirement must be appropriate and effective. Therefore, the cabinet is also working on tightening the fine policy.

Information

Most parents want the best for their children. However, many parents do not always realize what it means for a child to vlog or to frequently appear in their parents vlogs. Information is needed to make parents aware of the risks to childrens well-being and to inform them about the applicable laws and regulations surrounding vlogs. In the coming time, efforts will be made to develop an information approach to specifically reach parents of vlog families and kid influencers.