Five Best Practices in Human Rights Reporting

by Chloe Poynton, Associate, Advisory Services, BSR

A year ago this month, the United Nations Human Rights Council endorsed new Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The Guiding Principles established a framework for business and human rights that established the government duty to protect human rights and the business responsibility to respect human rights. A year later, many companies are beginning to incorporate the Guiding Principles into their human rights strategy but have been left wondering how best to report on their activities.
Over the last few months, I’ve reviewed a number of reports to better understand current expectations for human rights reporting and what is considered leadership.  I’ve found that human rights reporting has too long focused on specific challenges, such as labor rights in the supply chain, without reporting on the broader human rights context. This trend is beginning to change, with leaders presenting nuanced views of their human rights challenges and centering them within the context of their wider business.
I have five recommendations for human rights reporting.

[read it, clicking here...]