Egan, SuzanneSuzanneEgan2016-01-072016-01-072015 Briti2015-07International and Comparative Law Quarterlyhttp://hdl.handle.net/10197/7346The phenomenon of child labour is on the rise in Europe in the wake of the economic crisis. Specific action in tackling this practice faces a range of challenges including the often hidden nature of the work, cultural attitudes and gendered constructions of the role of children especially in domestic settings. This article explores the range of international standards and efforts made by numerous human rights tribunals aimed at combating the practice, with particular emphasis on the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights. It concludes that the Court has drawn erratically on its standard methodologies (including the comparative technique) in interpreting Article 4 of the ECHR, thus providing limited guidance to European States in getting to grips with child labour.enChild labourEuropean Convention on Human RightsForced labourInternational Human RightsInternational Labour OrganisationServitudeSlaveryJournal Article64360163010.1017/S00205893150001722015-11-20https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/ie/