Soul Economy

Corporations can lift human rights standards where these are inadequate and not in line with international expectations; or corporations can abuse them, often as an unintended side effect of operations, sometimes through negligence and in ‘worst case scenarios’, intentionally to obtain unfair advantage.

For some business executives the shift from assuming that human rights protection and promotion is solely the responsibility of governments to taking responsibility for the impact business has on human rights in their ‘sphere of influence’ is difficult. For decades it has been acceptable for business to operate within legal frameworks on the assumption that government regulation will take care of the needs of society. Unfortunately, regulations have not kept pace with the demands of globalisation and are insufficient in protecting human rights in particular situations. In response, some business leaders have taken the initiative, due to pressure from civil society and consumer groups or due to enlightened self interest, and moved beyond merely complying with government regulations to designing and implementing voluntary human rights initiatives.

And why exactly should business concern itself with human rights? Because the expectations of shareholders and consumers, governments, local communities and influential media commentators have changed significantly concerning the role of business in respecting human rights - to the extent that courts in some countries have, for example, recently held that the right to a clean environment is a fundamental human right.

Another reason business leaders welcome the use of universally agreed United Nations standards on human rights as a framework - and where they don’t should - is the difficulty of measuring indirect impacts of business activities and the social (including the human rights) consequences of business operations.

These developments affect Australian trans-national and national businesses alike.

There are many intersections between corporate activities and human rights - both generally and ‘industry specific’.

Examples include:

• the potential health impacts of products such as fast food, building materials, tobacco and mobile phones
• the price and availability of important pharmaceuticals (and issues related to the right to health and the right to life)
• the potential human rights impacts of supply chains
  exploitation of mineral resources including the mining of so called conflict diamonds

to name just a few.

The current worldwide debate about climate change and its potential impact on our quality of life illustrates the interdependence of human rights and environmental issues and the critical need for business leadership to create, or be actively involved in creating, solutions.

Where to from here for business? In the absence of sufficient regulation a plethora of mostly voluntary initiatives has evolved in an attempt to define what exactly the human rights obligations of business are and also to provide practical guidance in translating those obligations into activities. Most of these initiatives - with very few exceptions, are by default business friendly to entice participation - sometimes to the frustration of more radical civil society organisations, are for this very reason, business friendly to encourage participation in the very initiatives.

Numerous international treaties, conventions and declarations identify human rights which governments and all members of society should uphold. Several international organisations, such as:

• The International Labour Organisation (ILO),
• The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) through the Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises,
• The United Nations through
  • The Global Compact, and
  • The draft United Nations Norms on Transnational Business and Human Rights and the
• The Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights

have all identified human rights obligations specific to private companies (The Millennium Development Goals also provide a useful benchmark corporate social responsibility and sustainability initiatives).

On 5 March 2008 a group of individuals from as far away as Mongolia, South Africa and Brazil as well as Australian peers representing business, civil society and government will come together to discuss the most important implications of human rights treaties for business at the Business and Human Rights workshop in Melbourne.

One of the leading international experts on human rights, Prof Brian Burdekin AO, former Federal Human Rights Commissioner and former Principle Adviser to the Federal Minister for Trade will provide will provide a briefing on the importance of international human rights law for Australian law. In addition, Ms Moira Rayner, will provide an overview of the recently adopted Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities.

An expert panel consisting of Mr Graeme Wise, Chairman, Adidem Group; Ms Jill Moodie, Corporate Social Responsibility Manager, Coles Ltd; Mr Alex Gossman, Director Government & Corporate Affairs, GlaxoSmithKline, Australia and Mr Michael Butler, Director and VIC Branch President, Amnesty International will relate their experiences.

The workshop is designed to be interactive and there will be time for questions and discussion. Senior representatives who have already registered come from BHP Billiton, Transurban Group, Clayton Utz, Xstrata Coal, leading civil society organisations and Government Agencies. The workshop will be hosted by BHP Billiton. For more information please go to: www.momentumpartnerships.com/pdf_downloads/Momentum_Workshop03.pdf

Michael Butler, Vic President, Amnesty International: ‘It is essential that human rights standards are ingrained in all areas of business practice in a global world and Amnesty International would like to engage with business in a constructive manner to ensure that these standards are met and maintained.’

Jill Moodie, Corporate Social Responsibility Manager, Coles Ltd: “In November 2005, the Coles Group launched an Ethical Sourcing Code, to ensure the goods we sell are made in safe working conditions and the basic human rights of workers are respected. To date our focus has been on direct imports from Asia.”

Graeme Wise, Executive Chair, The Adidem Group: “Our society is increasingly influenced and shaped by business. So, if the values we aspire to as individuals on human rights, environmental responsibility and social justice are not reflected in the actions of business, then in the long term our society will itself fail to reflect these values. It is time for individuals in business to acknowledge that poor behaviour in business is a reflection of themselves, not the business.”

Professor Brian Burdekin AO, former Federal Human Rights Commissioner: “The importance of the private sector in protecting human rights has almost invariably been underestimated and, frequently, overlooked entirely. In an increasingly interdependent and “privatised” world this situation cannot continue without very serious consequences - not only for individuals affected by human rights violations, but also for the corporate sector and the governments responsible for regulating it. Achieving an appropriate regulatory balance will only be possible with a more informed and engaged contribution from business people - as well as civil society and bureaucratic advisors.”

Prepared and © by Ulrike Schuermann, Momentum International Partnership.

Tags: Adidem Group; Ms Jill Moodie, Amnesty International, Australia and Mr Michael Butler, Chairman, Coles Ltd; Mr Alex Gossman, Corporate Social Responsibility Manager, Director and VIC Branch President, Director Government & Corporate Affairs, former Federal Human Rights Commissioner and former Pri, GlaxoSmithKline, human rights, ILO, Mr Graeme Wise, OECD, Prof Brian Burdekin AO, The Global Compact, The Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights, UN