The UN Guiding Principles turned four, but where are we going?
On 16 June 2011, the UN Human Rights Council adopted the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
The Principles provide ‘guidelines for States and companies to prevent and address human rights abuses committed in business operations’ and clear up the question as to whether or not companies have a responsibility to respect human rights once and for all, they do.
The Principles outline three steps that companies should take to fulfil their responsibility to respect human rights:
- Publish a policy commitment to respect human rights
- Implement a human rights due diligence process
- Implement a remediation process
Put simply, the responsibility for companies to respect human rights means that they must constantly be aware of their real and potential impact on the world, strive for improvement, and be as transparent as possible.
Embedding human rights into company functions is an ongoing process which must always favour continuous improvement over ticking all the boxes as quickly as possible. In our experience, a significant development we have seen since the adoption of the Principles, is a tremendous change of mind-set within businesses. The process is a lengthy one, but implementing a human rights policy is now on the agenda of the majority of companies we work with. However, there are still internal challenges in ensuring compliance and remediation, external challenges on transparency, and also challenges to make the efforts productive to both business and society.
There is no ‘one size fits all’-approach to embedding human rights within company functions
Internally, companies have started to educate their employees, assess their supply chains and address issues that arise. Externally, companies communicate more openly about human rights issues in their operations. Previously, companies tended to disengage themselves from problems along their supply chain. Active investigation and the acknowledgement of problems are now more common, as is a solution-oriented focus.
When evaluating the work done so far, there is an important factor that we cannot lose sight of: there is no ‘one size fits all’-approach to embedding human rights within company functions. There are differences between sectors and companies, as well as between branches of a company in different regions, that require careful consideration. Also, especially when we talk about the biggest of the big companies, their size alone makes spreading the message and implementing it across all company layers a lengthy process.
To make companies put human rights high on their agendas, several balls are currently rolling: an intergovernmental working group is looking into the creation of an internationally binding treaty that will regulate the activities and impact of multinational companies, the EU adopted a directive on non-financial reporting for companies last year, and member states –such as the UK and France- have started to adopt binding legislation to implement the directive at national level.
“We will take action to promote better working conditions by increasing transparency, promoting identification and prevention of risks and strengthening complaint mechanisms. We recognize the joint responsibility of governments and business to foster sustainable supply chains and encourage best practices.”
G7 Leaders’ Declaration
Simultaneously, the old habit of name calling, where governments point the finger at enterprises and vice versa, seems to be slowly fading. Instead, a welcome emphasis is being put on the joint responsibility to improve the human rights situation together –as confirmed by the G7 leaders in June.
Companies will have to actively work on human rights, but this does not change or lessen the obligation of states to protect their people and use diplomatic relations to hold each other accountable.
Four years after the adoption of the Principles, some fundamental progress has been made. In our work, we now see that businesses are actively working to find and implement solutions for human rights challenges.
Companies will have to actively work on human rights, but this does not change or lessen the obligation of states to protect their people and use diplomatic relations to hold each other accountable.
What is often overlooked in the human rights debate is the positive contribution of business through their core business activities: for example, a supply chain management system that is focused on quality of the products, stable delivery and long term partnerships and collaboration with suppliers is a significantly productive effort in truly advancing the situation of human rights in economy and society.
It is through these collaborations and through providing employees and communities with the means for further economic and educational development that true respect for human rights becomes more effectively possible.
What is often overlooked in the human rights debate is the positive contribution of business
There is still a considerable way to go, but we must not let our zeal for progress blind us from seeing the positive developments that would have been inconceivable a decade ago. To progress further and more effectively, our focus should go beyond compliance to emphasise the potential for business to contribute positively to human rights.
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Stefan Crets is the executive director of CSR Europe, the leading European business network for Corporate Social Responsibility. Through its network of around 60 corporate members and 42 National CSR organisations, it gathers over 10,000 companies, and acts as a platform for businesses looking to enhance sustainable growth and positively contribute to society.
On 16-17 November, CSR Europe will host the Enterprise 2020 Summit, a unique opportunity to engage and network with CEOs, high-level EU officials and thought leaders in the sector, the Summit will bring together the people and ideas to shape the future of business in Europe.