UN-BHR

Report: US Immigration Policy Will Pose BHR Risks

March 27, 2017

A new report by global risk analyst Verisk Maplecroft analyzing threats to business and human rights (BHR) contends that the Trump Administration’s immigration policies could endanger the human rights of undocumented immigrants and will increase the need for strong "human rights due diligence" efforts to ensure BHR-compliant sourcing of products and services.
Lawyers Examine Expanding 2017 BHR Agenda

March 24, 2017

An update from lawyers at the firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP examines tightening restrictions corporations will likely face in 2017 under the global business and human rights (BHR) agenda, including legal reporting and due diligence requirements, BHR national action plans, and civil society efforts to benchmark corporate BHR progress.
UN Agency Broadens Scope of MNE Declaration

March 22, 2017

The International Labour Organization's recently updated Tripartite Declaration of principles concerning Multinational Enterprises (MNE) and Social Policy includes items from the global business and human rights agenda including corporate due diligence standards and the social right to "decent work."
NGOs Call for BHR Treaty to Govern Trade Deals

March 20, 2017

An alliance of Catholic development organizations called CIDSE has commissioned a study proposing model clauses for a binding UN treaty on business and human rights (BHR) calling for such a treaty to include provisions requiring governments to recognize and respect the BHR agenda in all international trade and investment agreements.
Academics Seek Global BHR Enforcement Mechanism

March 20, 2017

Dr. Kamil Ometoso of Coventry University and Dr. Hakeem Yusuf of the University of Birmingham assert that the shortcomings of national enforcement of laws governing business conduct signal the need for a global mechanism to hold transnational corporations accountable for their failure to implement the business and human rights (BHR) agenda.
Activist Seeks EU Involvement in BHR Treaty

March 17, 2017

An op-ed by Anne Van Schaik of Friends of the Earth Europe signals the dissatisfaction of human rights and environmental activists with the progress of "voluntary" business and human rights (BHR) measures, such as the UN Guiding Principles on BHR, and calls for EU participation in the establishment of a binding UN BHR treaty to "bring corporate actors to justice."
Lawyer Pushes BHR Due Diligence in New Zealand

March 17, 2017

Human rights lawyer Rebecca McAllum has called on businesses in New Zealand to adopt provisions of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (BHR) relating to performing comprehensive "due diligence" assessments of their BHR impacts to manage reputational and legal risks and to fulfill a "precondition" to entering many global markets.
NGO Benchmarks Companies on BHR Issues

March 15, 2017

The Corporate Human Rights Benchmark has released its first report rating efforts by individual companies in the agricultural, apparel, and extractives sectors to implement the global business and human rights (BHR) agenda and calling for these businesses to do more to advance BHR due diligence, transparency, and responses to allegations.
UN Discussion Focuses on State BHR Obligations

March 15, 2017

The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recently held a wide-ranging discussion on a draft comment on the obligations of governments to regulate business activities under international human rights law, in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (BHR).
IOC Commits to UNGPs, Sustainability Agenda

March 15, 2017

The International Olympic Committee (IOC), under pressure from human rights and environmental activists, has agreed to include in its contract with the host cities of future Olympic Games a provision requiring the respect of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) and the UN's "sustainable development" agenda.