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Guiding Principle 16

As the basis for embedding their responsibility to respect human rights, business enterprises should express their commitment to meet this responsibility through a statement of policy that:

(a) Is approved at the most senior level of the business enterprise;

(b) Is informed by relevant internal and/or external expertise;

(c) Stipulates the enterprise’s human rights expectations of personnel, business partners and other parties directly linked to its operations, products or services;

(d) Is publicly available and communicated internally and externally to all personnel, business partners and other relevant parties;

(e) Is reflected in operational policies and procedures necessary to embed it throughout the business enterprise.

Commentary

The term “statement” is used generically, to describe whatever means an enterprise employs to set out publicly its responsibilities, commitments, and expectations.

The level of expertise required to ensure that the policy statement is adequately informed will vary according to the complexity of the business enterprise’soperations. Expertise can be drawn from various sources, ranging from credible online or written resources to consultation with recognized experts.

The statement of commitment should be publicly available. It should be communicated actively to entities with which the enterprise has contractual relationships; others directly linked to its operations, which may include State security forces; investors; and, in the case of operations with significant human rights risks, to the potentially affected stakeholders.

Internal communication of the statement and of related policies and procedures should make clear what the lines and systems of accountability will be, and should be supported by any necessary training for personnel in relevant business functions.

Just as States should work towards policy coherence, so business enterprises need to strive for coherence between their responsibility to respect human rights and policies and procedures that govern their wider business activities and relationships. This should include, for example, policies and procedures that set financial and other performance incentives for personnel; procurement practices; and lobbying activities where human rights are at stake.

Through these and any other appropriate means, the policy statement should be embedded from the top of the business enterprise through all its functions, which otherwise may act without awareness or regard for human rights.

What National Action Plans say on Guiding Principle 16

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PLANNED ACTIONS:

Action point 1, Elaborer une boîte à outils destinée aux entreprises et organisations concernant les droits de l’Homme [Develop a toolkit for companies and organizations on human rights], presents the action of developing, in collaboration with experts and main human rights stakeholders and organizations, a toolbox that will help companies prevent human rights violations and promote the respect for human rights through their activities. This “Toolbox” will be composed of different elements including how companies can create grievance mechanisms; launch initiatives for data collection in order to prepare human rights commitments and policy statements; and apply proper human rights due diligence.

In the context of 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] the NAP explains that “the OECD, and the EU, wants to make more non-financial information available. In this context, companies are encouraged to make public their policy on corporate ethics, social affairs, human rights, including, where applicable, in their supply chains, the human rights risks identified, their action plans to prevent any negative impacts and to remedy if necessary, and the measured impact of these action plans.” Alongside the federal government, the Wallonia, Flemish and Brussels governments are committed to encouraging the publication of non-financial reporting by large companies.

The action point 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.

Action point 16, Promouvoir les rapports sociétaux, droits de l’Homme inclus [Promote social reporting, including human rights] is the main action point covering the issue of non-financial reporting. The NAP explains that given the adoption of the new EU directive 2014/95/EU, some major companies will be required to disclose non-financial information in their annual report relating to the environmental, social and human resource issues, respect for human rights and the fight against corruption and bribery. Companies that meet the conditions for making such a non-financial statement but that do not have a policy on one or more of the above-mentioned issues will be required to provide a clear and reasoned explanation of the reasons for this choice and to include it in this non-financial reporting.

Action point 20, Promouvoir les entreprises publiques socialement responsables [Promote state enterprises that are socially responsible] also touches upon human rights due diligence. The action’s objective is to create a learning network for public enterprises, which strives to bring together knowledge, to pool expertise and exchange experiences in order to realize CSR commitments and ambitions. Particular attention will be paid to how public enterprises can integrate and promote respect for human rights within their organization through tools such as reporting and/or “due diligence”.

VI. Culture of Human Rights and peace-building in the business sector

Two political agendas working together [page 18]

6.1 The Council to the President for Human Rights, within the following year of this Plan being launched, will encourage business to define and publicly disclose their political commitment to respect human rights.

Pillar II. The Corporate Responsibility to Respect

Commitment [pages 32-34]

A business faced with risks of human rights violations in its operations should make it publicly clear, in the first place, that it is aware of those risks and is ready to tackle them. This respect for human rights is expressed outwardly by a publicly communicated business commitment.

The Government of the Czech Republic recommends that businesses adopt internal commitments in accordance with the recommendations below. It recommends, in the formation of commitments and codes of conduct, drawing on the aforementioned international conventions and Guiding Principles of the UN or other internationally acknowledged standards (such as the Global Compact or the sectoral recommendations of the OECD). The adoption of such commitments should not be reduced to a formal declaration, but should be followed up by specific steps for their implementation. Companies actively subscribing to human rights responsibility set a good example for the entire sector and help to spread the Czech Republic’s good reputation abroad.

What should a commitment encompass?

A definition of whose human rights are affected by the commitment.
Conformity with national law and fundamental international legal standards: If national law is at odds with internationally acknowledged human rights requirements, businesses must find ways of respecting international standards that will not bring them into conflict with national law.
Human rights as a legal compliance issue: Even if the host state’s law does not enforce human rights standards, approach them within the framework of internal decision-making as though they were legal requirements.
Handling of borderline situations: What to do if a commitment cannot be pursued completely, e.g. due to a conflict with the host state’s law or the monopoly supplier’s requirements.
Control, evaluation and implementation mechanisms.
Frameworks for consultation with the groups of the public affected or their representatives (this matter is covered by a separate section below).
Relations with partners: Although an internal document cannot dictate how business partners are to conduct themselves, it can influence them indirectly. In this respect, businesses should specify – as part of their commitment – what standard of care they expect from their partners and suppliers and, status permitting, they should implement that standard in the form of tender conditions of contractual clauses or by other means.
Protection of whistleblowers: This includes, on the one hand, instructions for employees on how to proceed if they detect unlawful conduct and, on the other, protection from retaliation.
Reasonable training, education and awareness-raising
Mechanisms of redress and the resolution of disputes between a business and any victims within the business.
Transparency, provisions on public information.

For a commitment to be effective, it should also comply with the following formal and procedural criteria:

Approval by the highest echelons of management: Board of directors, chief executive officer, etc.
Professional production: For small businesses, it is enough to adopt any of the model documents. Multinational corporations with complex business dealings should devise a built-to-suit commitment.
Specific expectations of specific persons: The commitment should not be a general declaration, but should have specific implications for employees and management alike, including a designation of liability for implementation and checks. It is essential for employees to be acquainted with the commitment and the consequences of breaching it.
Implementation: Other internal policies, directives and instructions should be brought into compliance with the commitment, or new ones should be drawn up. Enforcement within the scope of internal processes is absolutely crucial.
Group-wide scope: If a business as a de facto influence on the functioning of other businesses, stemming in particular from the controlling relations within a group, the commitment should also apply to them.
Updates: The commitment should be regularly revised and updated.

Businesses may – and are encouraged to – modify tenets of the Guiding Principles and tailor them to their operations, provided that there is no loss of substance or purpose as a result. One example of this sort is the sectoral Electric Industry Code of Conduct, which fleshes out and applies the Guiding Principles to the specific needs of the electrical engineering industry. This Code was drawn up by the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition and has also been adopted by several companies in the Czech Republic.

A commitment is not merely an internal document. It is a statement by a business that it is aware of and serious about its human rights responsibility. Besides being posted on the corporate website, the commitment should also be incorporated into communications with suppliers, investors, business partners and other groupings. These communications should encompass the following information:

How did the commitment come about?
What target groups (right-holders) does it concern?
How will it be disseminated among those it concerns?
- Among those who are to implement it (employees, suppliers)?
- Among the right-holders who are to protect it?

Documents and sources of information

The Office of the Government of the Czech Republic collects model documents, guidelines and materials intended for businesses to improve the performance of tasks in this chapter, and posts them on the National Corporate Social Responsibility Portal: http://narodniportal.cz/

3.2. Responsible Business Conduct

How should a company fulfil its responsibility? [page 32]

The 16th principle specifies the ways in which companies can embed respect for human rights in all their activities and publicly express their commitment. Policy statements and operational guidelines provide a practical framework for the company’s activities. The Guiding Principles strongly emphasise that a company’s strategy should be adopted at the most senior level. The Government stressed the responsibility of management in this respect in its white paper on state ownership.