Poland – Human Rights Due Diligence

2017-2020 NATIONAL ACTION PLAN

Introduction

2. Responsible business conduct (CSR/RBC) and human rights [page 6]

In Chapter IV [of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises], Human Rights, it is stated that enterprises should respect human rights; avoid causing or contributing to adverse human rights impacts and address such impacts when they occur; seek ways to prevent or mitigate adverse human rights impacts that are directly linked to their business operations, products, or services through business relationships; have a policy commitment to respect human rights; carry out human rights due diligence; and co-operate through legitimate processes in the remediation of adverse human rights impacts.

Pillar II: Corporate responsibility to respect human rights

6. UN Guiding Principles in the operations of the Export Credit Insurance Corporation [page 32]

The issue of respecting human rights in the operations of export credit agencies was raised both in the work on the 2012 Recommendation (modification of the 2007 33 document) and during several years of its revision, culminating in the adoption of the current version by the OECD Council on 6 April 2016. The current version of the Recommendation, officially published on 3 April 2016 (TAD/ECG (2016) 3) takes greater account of the requirements for respecting human rights in a procedure known as due diligence in the social and environmental aspects, e.g., in the classification of export undertakings and risk assessment.

2021-2024 NATIONAL ACTION PLAN

2. Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy

Responsible business – promoting due diligence standards

The plans of the Working Group for Relations with Individuals Performing Work include,
among others, the following activities:

  monitoring international trends concerning proposed regulatory solutions for increasing the responsibility of enterprises in the area of respecting human rights, supporting the process of possible implementation of regulatory solutions in this field into the Polish legislation, creating due diligence procedures by enterprises,

The issue of due diligence in the field of human rights will also be of particular interest to the Advisory Board for Sustainable Development and Corporate Social Responsibility in view of the legislative changes planned at the EU level as regards due diligence in the area of human rights and environmental issues, as well as in the field of non-financial reporting covering, among others, issues concerning the respect for human rights. Monitoring the directions of legislative changes in non-financial data reporting planned at the EU level, as well as work in areas related to non-financial reporting, constitutes one of the tasks of the Working Group on the Development of Non-financial Reporting established on 31 March 2021. – page 10/11

5. Ministry of Finance

Implementation of the Good Practice Catalogue on due diligence for European Union importers of tin, tantalum and tungsten, their ores, and gold originating from conflict-affected and high-risk areas

On 1 January 2021, new obligations took effect as regards supply chain due diligence for EU importers of tin, tantalum and tungsten, their ores, and gold originating from conflict-affected and high-risk areas. These obligations were established by Regulation (EU) 2017/821 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2017. – page 23/24

Appendix 2 (information of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

GOOD PRACTICE CATALOGUE FOR FOREIGN MISSIONS IN THE FIELD OF BUSINESS AND HUMAN RIGHTS2

Introduction
The following recommendations are basic assumptions and should be used by the missions to create their own extensive catalogues of good practices adapted to the conditions in the country of the missions, set out among others in the elaborated maps of risks and threats to human rights.

Recommendations

– comply with the United Nations ‘UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights’ and the principle of ‘due diligence’3 and to continuously raise awareness of the need to apply them in practice among both employees and partners of the mission; – page 46