debora patta saw dangerous conditions firsthand. >> reporter: he has never ben to school. he has no idea how to read or wright. but he is an expert in washing cobalt. >> so you need to make money for your granny? >> yes. these consider lug heavy sacks of cobalt to be washed in rivers. and even those too young to work, spend much of their day breathing in toxic fumes. officials chase children away saying nobody under 18 is allowed to work here. clearly that is not the case. >> we asked these companies if their child mined cobalt is being used in their products. all acknowledged problems with the supply chain, but say they require their supplies to follow responsible sourcing guidelines. and the investigation shows how complicated it is to chase child mined cobalt. they're already micked up without labels. the cobalt is brought here to the market. where it is bought by chinese company, extremely low prices. and they went back later with a hidden camera. child mined dough baltimore. when we offered off to sell a truck load of the mineral. nobody asked us who mined the cobalt.

debora patta, cbs news, democrictehers have something t celebrate.ww thanks for loading, sweet... oops. oh burnt-on gravy? gotta e no way. nada. really? dish issues? throw it all in. cascade platinum powers through even burnt-on gravy. nice. torrow. teachers are ending their strike and getting a raise. meg oliver was at the state capitol when the word came down. [ cheers and applause ] >> it is over between teachers after a nine day strike. they reached a deal for a 5% pay increase for all state employees, not just striking teachers. teachers are celebrating. after nine days and 277,000 students left at home. this strike has motivated other teachers across the country to follow suit, oklahoma teachers, could strike as early as next month. jeff. >> meg oliver in the middle of the celebration. meg, thaou mayor of nashville resigned today pleaded guilty to fell thee theft. this is her mug shot. a rising star in the democratic rty. but in january sunny admitted to an affair with the former head . all the while he was racking upv both have agreed to pay t

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debora patta saw the dangerous conditions firsthand. >> reporter: ziki swaze has never been to school no idea how to read or write, but he is an expert in washing cobalt. "my parents are dead," he told us, "and i stay with my grandma." so you need to make money for your granny? >> yes. >> reporter: there are thousands more children like 11-year-old ziki. barely 10 years old, these kids lug heavy sacks of cobalt to be washed in rivers. and even those too young to work spend much of their day breathing in toxic fumes. officials make a big show of chasing children away saying nobody under 18 is allowed to work here, but, clearly, that is not the case. we asked these companies whether child-mined cobalt is being used in their products. all acknowledged problems with the supply chain, but say they require their suppliers to follow responsible sourcing guidelines, but our investigation shows just how complicated it is to trace child-mined cobalt. leaving the mines, sacks are already mixed up without labels. the children's cobalt is brought here to this market where it is bought by a chinese

debora patta reports. >> the drc is embroiled in conflict and difficult and some times dangerous to reportto the south of the country we saw what looked like the wild west. they're digging in trenches. and laboring in lakes. hunting for treasure. in a playground from hell. hard enough for an adult man, unthinkable for a child. and yet, tens of thousands of kids are involved in every stage of mining for cobalt. more than half the world's supply comes from the drc. 20% of that is mined by hand. we traveled along collapsing dirt roads. children are everywhere. digging for cobalt in abandoned open pit mines. and it is clear, security officials in charge here, only some of them in uniform, have something to hide. every few hundred feet we get stopped, requesting letters, documents. even though we have official permission to be here. but for the chinese middle man we saw who buy the cobalt no such constraints they have free access to the mines. inside, women and children are doing so-called artisinal mining. don't be fooled this is no quaint cottage industry. at barely 10 years old, children lug

debora patta traveled to the dnc to follow the complex supply chain.good morning. the drc is embroiled in conflict and it's difficult and sometimes dangerous to report from there. on a recent trip soublt of the country we saw what looked like the wild west. they're digging in trenches and laboring in lakes. hunting for treasure in a playground from hello. hard enough for an adult man, unthinkable for a child. and yet tens of thousands of congolese kids are involved in every stage of mining for cobalt. more than half the world's supply comes from the drc. 20% of that is mined by hand. we traveled along collapsing dirt roads. children are everywhere digging for cobalt in abandoned open pit mines, and it's clear security officials in charge here only some of them in uniform, have something to hide. there's such a sensitivity around the cobalt mine every few hundred feet we get stopped requesting letters, document we have official reason to be here. there are no such constraints. they have free access to the mines. inside women and children are doing so-ca