Human rights due diligence in practice

The debate on corporate human rights responsibility and due diligence has gained momentum in various European countries over recent years. In Germany, the Bundestag passed the Supply Chain Due Diligence Act on 11 June 2021, which from 2023 will legally oblige German companies to respect human rights in their supply chains and purchasing practices. The law sets out clear requirements for companies’ due diligence obligations and their implementation. An extensive draft of an EU directive on due diligence for corporate management and sustainability was also drawn up and presented on 23 February 2022. This is currently being examined by the EU Parliament and Council. Other European countries have legislative initiatives or laws in force that oblige companies to take care of the environment and respect human rights. This legal regulation by the European Commission and individual governments is a logical step towards making the
requirements of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises legally binding.

This report examines the current status of the integration of human rights due diligence into corporate policy and the strategies and individual business practices of the companies surveyed. The aim is to ascertain what approaches, strategies, programmes and plans companies are pursuing in order to comply with human rights due diligence in business activities throughout their supply chains. This is not about ranking the selected companies; rather, the aim is to present and classify existing approaches to the implementation of human rights due diligence and to identify the challenges and areas where action is required.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Download the English report here: Brand Performance Check Suedwind and Inkota

Download the German report here: Unternehmensbefragung menschenrechtliche Sorgfaltspflicht