Business & Human Rights

UN Agency Sets out Principles for BHR and Violent Crime

August 24, 2017

The UN Global Compact has released a "Good Practice Note" containing principles on how companies should perform proper "due diligence" in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (BHR) when operating in areas with high rates of violent crime, including provisions on how businesses should help alleviate violent crime in these regions.
NGO Criticizes IMF, World Bank Labor Advice

August 24, 2017

The nongovernmental organization Bretton Woods Project has published an article warning that policy advice from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank on loosening labor regulations and moderating minimum wage laws is inconsistent with the global labor rights agenda and will not contribute to employment or economic growth.
US Pressures UN on Israeli Settlement "Blacklist"

August 23, 2017

The Washington Post reports that US diplomats are pushing the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights not to publish a database of companies allegedly operating in disputed territory claimed by Palestinians for a future state, asserting that disclosing such a list goes beyond the office's mandate and violates principles of due process.
NGOs Call for Mandatory BHR "Due Diligence" in Germany

August 23, 2017

A group of global nongovernmental organizations has proposed legislation for Germany that would require companies to perform "due diligence" to monitor and remedy human rights impacts in their operations and their global supply chains, in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (BHR).
Environmentalists Criticize Australian Bank's Climate Statement

August 23, 2017

The Guardian reports that environmental activists have criticized Commonwealth Bank, the largest bank in Australia, for failing to include in its recent climate statement, committing to the 2015 Paris deal on global warming, sufficient specificity on how it will divest from fossil fuel assets and work toward achieving the agreement's objectives.