Human rights

Etude

Human rights in large European corporations

From commitment to due diligence

There has been a growing interest in how corporations are mainstreaming Human rights into business operations. Human rights within business is now emerging as a key issue of governance and regulation in our globalized economy. Beyond their vigilance as employers or purchasers, corporations today take steps to identify and address their human rights impacts throughout their whole value chain. In this context, the present study highlights a selection of best practices implemented by large European companies listed on Euronext Paris and EURO STOXX 50 with regard to human rights. This paper also examines how human rights are integrated into corporate practices and behaviors and presents some of the strategic, operational and human challenges that may come with their implementation.

Key results

  • Employee health and safety and the fight against discrimination in the workplace are the most frequently mentioned topics in engagement policies.
  • More than a third of those surveyed dedicate specific communication materials to their human rights policy. And two thirds of those surveyed include human rights in their procurement policy.
  • Less than one in five companies communicate on the governance and leadership of their human rights approach.
  • Less than one fifth of surveyed companies have carried out a human rights impact assessment down their supply chain.