This page has been archived. Elements of the page are available to browse but the information contained here is not up to date.

Guiding Principle 12

The responsibility of business enterprises to respect human rights refers to internationally recognized human rights – understood, at a minimum, as those expressed in the International Bill of Human Rights and the principles concerning fundamental rights set out in the International Labour Organization’s Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work.

Commentary

Because business enterprises can have an impact on virtually the entire spectrum of internationally recognized human rights, their responsibility to respect applies to all such rights. In practice, some human rights may be at greater risk than others in particular industries or contexts, and therefore will be the focus of heightened attention. However, situations may change, so all human rights should be the subject of periodic review.

An authoritative list of the core internationally recognized human rights is contained in the International Bill of Human Rights (consisting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the main instruments through which it has been codified: the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights), coupled with the principles concerning fundamental rights in the eight ILO core conventions as set out in the Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. These are the benchmarks against which other social actors assess the human rights impacts of business enterprises. The responsibility of business enterprises to respect human rights is distinct from issues of legal liability and enforcement, which remain defined largely by national law provisions in relevant jurisdictions.

Depending on circumstances, business enterprises may need to consider additional standards. For instance, enterprises should respect the human rights of individuals belonging to specific groups or populations that require particular attention, where they may have adverse human rights impacts on them. In this connection, United Nations instruments have elaborated further on the rights of indigenous peoples; women; national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities; children; persons with disabilities; and migrant workers and their families. Moreover, in situations of armed conflict enterprises should respect the standards of international humanitarian law

What National Action Plans say on Guiding Principle 12

Belgium

STATUS IN BELGIUM/ACTIONS ENGAGED:

The introduction describes that international organizations such as the ILO and OECD have developed a series of tools to support companies that aim at taking positive action towards matters of human rights. It also mentions the ISO26000 and UNGC.

At the EU-level the introduction presents the directive 2014/95/UE concerning non-financial reporting for some of the larger companies.

PLANNED ACTIONS:

Action point 4, Promouvoir les initiatives qualitatives existantes relatives aux droits de l’Homme et à la responsabilité sociétale [Promote existing qualitative initiatives on human rights and social responsibility], the federal government explains that as part of the promotion of the application of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, the OECD NCP organized a seminar in early 2014, which highlighted the importance of the respect and promotion of human rights by companies

Action point 7, Sensibiliser les entreprises concernant les questions des droits de l’Homme dans le cadre de missions économiques à l’étranger [Raise awareness among companies on issues of human rights in the context of economic missions abroad]. The aim of this action is to ensure that the economic missions organized by Belgium, in consultation and cooperation with the regional authorities, include awareness-raising on the issue of corporate social responsibility, and sustainable development in general, but especially the respect for human rights. This could also include information on UN Global Compact, as well as on the initiatives of other international organizations (such as the ILO or OECD), of Belgian or local civil society, active in the field of business and human rights.

Action point 13, Renforcer et contrôler le respect des droits de l’Homme dans les marchés publics [Strengthen and monitor the respect for human rights in public procurement], is the main action point on public procurement. Belgium’s Working Group on Sustainable Public Procurement analyzed various case studies on monitoring compliance with ILO clauses and human rights in supply chains in order to test, through pilot projects, whether such an initiative is feasible in Belgium. As one of the planned actions, implementation and follow-up of this initiative will be carried out in cooperation with the relevant federal, regional and local administrations.

Flemish public procurement pilot projects on “Employment and Social Economy” and “Chancellery and Public Governance” will, together with the buyers of the various contracting authorities, monitor the credibility of the supporting documents (concerning the respect for human rights, etc.) and the respect for ILO core Conventions. This is necessary in order to verify that the human rights criteria included in the conditions are also effectively complied with. In this respect, the Flemish Authority will concentrate primarily on the procurement of textile products.

Action point 15, Intégrer le principe de « diligence raisonnable » au sein des organismes de gestion de l’entreprise, également en matière de droits de l’Homme [Incorporate the principle of “due diligence” into the management of the company, also in the terms of human rights] also mentions corporate governance. Concretely, the action will consist of contacting those responsible for the two Belgian corporate governance codes in order to examine the possibility of integrating international developments, in particular with regard to human rights, which will entail the attempt to minimize the administrative burden on public authorities or enterprises, but without impairing the application and implementation of ambitious criteria and controls.

In the context of the Action point 22, Encourager la gestion responsable des chaînes d’approvisionnement avec une approche sectorielle [Encourage responsible supply chain management with a sector-wide approach], the NAP explains that different initiatives have been taken in the past to contribute to the respect for human rights in supply chains.

The “OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas” was the first example of a collaborative, multi-stakeholder initiative supported by the OECD for responsible management of mineral supply chains located in conflict areas. The NAP states that the NCP had organized a round table in 2014 with the objective of collecting reactions and questions to the “OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas”. One of the aimed actions will be for the NCP to continue its work of informing and spreading knowledge to Belgian companies on the sustainable management of the supply chains through a sectoral approach.

Action point 24, Accorder une attention particulière à la question des droits de l’enfant dans la sensibilisation des entreprises [Pay special attention to the issue of children’s rights in awareness raising of enterprises], is specifically targeting the issue of children’s rights. According to the Belgian federal government, “the area of children’s rights have not been enshrined in the UNGPs to the extent they find necessary to address businesses responsibility to respect human rights.” Belgium wants to give special attention to this particular issue in its NAP by engaging through several parallel measures such as

Active support and awareness raising of companies on the Principles governing enterprises in the field of children’s rights, in order to allow Belgian companies to maximize the positive effects of their activities on the lives of children by supporting and respecting their rights and those of their parents or guardians, including the right to a decent wage.
Continued support to UNICEF activities, including the publication of the reading guide for the Committee on the Rights of the Child’s Observation No. 16 and the creation of a platform for businesses that wish to commit to the basis of the Principles governing businesses in the field of children’s rights.
Emphasis on children’s rights in awareness building throughout the network of Belgian diplomacy, particularly through active distribution of the Principles governing businesses in the area of children’s rights in the Toolbox set out in Action Point 1.

On Action point 28, Exécution du Plan d’action flamand “Entrepreneuriat international durable 2014-2015-2016” (« Duurzaam Internationaal Ondernemen 2014-2015-2016 ») [Implementation of the Flemish Action Plan “Sustainable International Entrepreneurship 2014-2015-2016”] the government of Flanders explains that Flanders Investment & Trade intends to play an important informative role on the most widely used reference frameworks for sustainable international entrepreneurship, being the ISO26000, the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the 10 Principles of the United Nations Global Compact.

Chile

Colombia

Czechia

Denmark

Finland

France

Germany

Ireland

Italy

Lithuania

Netherlands

Norway

3.1 Responsibility to respect human rights

Companies’ responsibility to respect human rights [page 31]

Internationally recognised human rights’ are those set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948, the two 1966 International Covenants, on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and on Political and Civil Rights, and the ILO core conventions. In some cases other standards may also be applicable, such as the rights of women, indigenous peoples, national, ethnic or linguistic minorities, children, people with disabilities, or foreign workers and their families. In cases of armed conflict companies should respect the standards laid down in international humanitarian law.

BOX: The ILO Core Conventions

The eight ILO core conventions provides a globally recognised framework for what constitutes a decent working life. The conventions are of key importance for the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the UN Global Compact and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. They include the following areas: The abolition of child labour (Convention No. 138 on the Minimum Age for Admission to Employment and Work, and Convention No.182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour). Freedom of association (Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise, and Convention No. 98 on the Application of the Principles of the Right to Organise and to Bargain Collectively). The elimination of discrimination (Convention No. 100 on Equal Remuneration for Men and Women Workers for Work of Equal Value, and Convention No. 111 on Discrimination in Respect of Employment and Occupation). The elimination of forced or compulsory labour (Convention No. 29 on Forced Labour, and Convention No. 105 on the Abolition of Forced Labour).

Poland

Spain

Sweden

Switzerland

4. Position of the Federal Council on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights

4.3 The position and expectations of the Federal Council [page 7]

The corporate responsibility to respect human rights refers to internationally recognised human rights. These include the human rights and principles rooted in the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the UN’s International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the UN’s International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the principles of the basic rights laid down in the eight fundamental conventions of the International Labour Organization (ILO) 16 , and in the Tripartite Declaration of Principles Concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy17. In addition to these instruments, the regional mechanisms instituted by the Council of Europe, and specifically the European Convention on Human Rights and its Additional Protocols are also important for Switzerland. Depending on the circumstances, business enterprises must also observe additional standards concerning particularly vulnerable population groups (cf. OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, Guideline 40). These include, for example, the Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and the international conventions protecting women, minorities, children, people with disabilities and migrant workers and members of their families.

In addition, the Federal Council expects business enterprises in armed conflicts to abide by the standards of international humanitarian law. Where local legislation does not correspond to international standards, the Federal Council recommends that business enterprises still comply with the international standards.

United Kingdom

United States

Download information