The topic of business and human rights is becoming more and more in demand. The behavior of companies in the aspect of human rights is the subject of attention of investors, civil society, partners, consumers, employees. Companies striving to meet new expectations, be sustainable and prepare for the fact that questions about the company's observance of human rights become a daily reality of business activities can already undergo self-testing, focusing on basic indicators in business and human rights issues. This will allow the company to determine its own growth areas in matters of ensuring responsible behavior, to identify those moments that require additional efforts on the part of the company.

In this article, we offer a set of such basic questions that companies can use for self-testing. This set is based on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, and based on its results, the company will have a general picture of the company's understanding, approach and interaction with business and human rights standards, regardless of the size of the company or the scope of its activities. Of course, such self–assessment is only the first step designed to determine the overall picture of the company's compliance with business and human rights standards. Self-assessment cannot replace due diligence in the field of human rights. At the same time, such a self-assessment will provide guidance on which issues should be the subject of priority attention during the due diligence procedure.

Advice before starting self-assessment

Before proceeding to the self-assessment procedure, we recommend assembling a team of company employees who are most knowledgeable about human rights issues. If you have a specially appointed sustainability/corporate social responsibility/human rights manager, or a person responsible for diversity and inclusion issues, or a CEO who is very enthusiastic about ensuring human rights, gather these people together before passing this self-assessment to get the best possible assessment and develop a plan for further work on implementation of the recommendations received. If you don't have such people responsible for human rights issues in the company yet, it's time to think about their appearance in the company.

The first block of questions. Human rights policy

Human rights are principles or standards according to which people have the right to be treated with dignity. They are inherently inherent in all people, regardless of their nationality, ethnic origin, gender, religion or other characteristics. Human rights range from fundamental rights necessary for survival, such as the right to life, food and water, to rights aimed at the development of a just and equitable society, such as the right to education, freedom and privacy. Human rights are protected at the international level by legal instruments such as treaties and conventions, international legal decisions and reports of various UN bodies, national and international bodies, as well as national legislation.

1. Does the company have a public document in which it undertakes to respect all internationally recognized human rights in its activities?

It should be clear that the obligation concerns all internationally recognized human rights, not just one or a few selected human rights. Only obligations to avoid adverse effects on human rights are considered here, and the company's charitable initiatives are not taken into account.

The optimal situation is when the company has a separate document "Human Rights Policy", which is publicly available on the company's website. It is also possible that there is no separate human rights document, but the relevant provisions are included in the company's Code of Conduct or in any other company document.

2. Does the company communicate its obligations on business and human rights at all levels of the company's activities?

It is not enough to have an official and public human rights policy, the company is obliged to implement the provisions of the policy in its activities. There are different actions that a company can take. The first such action is to ensure that there is a specially appointed employee to monitor and facilitate the company's progress in implementing business standards and human rights.

3. Does the company have a labor rights compliance policy?

The Company publicly undertakes to respect basic human rights at work, in particular such as:

- freedom of association and collective bargaining;

- elimination of all forms of forced labor;

- the actual elimination of child labor;

- elimination of discrimination in employment and professional activity;

- safe and healthy working environment.

Also in the public domain is a policy statement in which the company undertakes to respect human rights at work. The company should include in such a policy a reference to basic labor rights in accordance with ILO conventions.

4. Does the company conduct regular training and awareness raising on human rights for all staff?

Examples of possible actions of the company:

- The company has a special educational program or materials for self-study on business and human rights, which are part of the adaptation process for new employees/ts

- The company invites external trainers to regularly inform about human rights.

5. Does the company interact with stakeholders and consult with them on its impact on human rights?

 This issue primarily concerns the company's open and timely communication on issues related to business and human rights with external parties – communities, contractors, other businesses, the state, etc., as well as conducting a regular assessment of its own impact on human rights.

The second block of questions. Respect for human rights and implementation of due diligence procedures in the field of human rights

This is great when a company starts from the policy level and includes human rights issues in the process of adapting new staff and raising awareness. The next step is to ensure that human rights standards become part of the company's core operational processes and are taken into account in the decision-making process.

In accordance with the UN Guidelines on Business and Human Rights at this level, companies must ensure that human rights become a key part of human rights impact assessment and due diligence procedures.

1. Does the company assess the risks of human rights violations associated with its activities?

This question is the starting point for understanding and fulfilling the company's obligation to respect human rights. Ideally, a company should strive to develop and regularly use a human rights due diligence procedure to ensure that the risks of human rights violations arising from its business operations are identified, monitored, assessed and prevented.

Ideally, a company should analyze the most significant risks of human rights violations related to its economic sector and activities (for example, at the corporate level, a general overview of risks in the country) and updates this analysis regularly or when the business or operational profile undergoes significant changes.

2. Does the company address issues related to the risks and impact on human rights caused by its products and services?

All companies have human rights risks; of course, these risks depend on the industry and the particular nature or type of products and services produced or provided by the business. For example, the potential impact of products and services provided by IT companies on the right to privacy and freedom of expression, or the potential impact associated with pharmaceutical or chemical products on consumers' right to health.

The main expectation from companies is that the company should integrate the assessment of human rights violation risks into existing risk management processes within the framework of the use of specific products or services and related harm compensation practices.

3. Are the company's human rights due diligence requirements included in sourcing and supply chain management solutions?

It is important that the human rights due diligence procedure includes an assessment of not only the company's risks, but also at least the first chain of suppliers and contractors. This is especially important when a company is operating in crisis conditions and may need to apply in-depth due diligence of human rights.

4. Does the company involve persons whose rights may be violated in conducting due diligence procedures to respect human rights?

The most optimal situation is when the company has an official procedure, a communication channel has been established with the affected communities and representatives of the copyright holders.

5. Does the company have the human resources and budget to identify and eliminate the impact on human rights?

Due diligence of human rights is a resource-intensive process that requires special knowledge and competence. The company may invest in the development of internal capacity to conduct due diligence of human rights or attract external specialists. These processes also require the attention of senior management, as well as further implementation and resources to ensure that the company reduces the consequences of all identified problematic issues related to past or potential human rights violations.

6. Does the company monitor the effectiveness of its due diligence efforts?

This question concerns the existing mechanisms and practices for monitoring the effectiveness of the company's due diligence. Such mechanisms can be general, such as internal audits and monitoring of suppliers, employee surveys, complaint mechanisms, or special ones created for the needs of the company, in particular, assessing progress in solving systemic problems or root causes of problems with the involvement of other stakeholders. Interested parties can be involved in monitoring, and monitoring itself can be based on a constant dialogue (for example, joint consideration of complaints together with public organizations).

The third block of questions. Legal remedies

There are various ways of organizing complaint mechanisms, largely depending on the activity and size of the company. The main thing is that such a mechanism exists and also covers issues related to human rights violations. Another good practice is to report the results of the consideration of complaints received, at least internally, so that other interested parties know what actions to refrain from or how to solve such problems.

1. Does the company have a transparent channel for employees to file complaints about human rights violations?

 It is expected that the company has a special mechanism for handling complaints on human rights issues, and all employees know how to use it. The company also publishes anonymous results of dispute resolution.

2. Does the company have public channels/mechanisms for handling complaints from individuals or communities outside the company?

This question concerns whether the company's complaint procedures are available to all interested parties – customers, suppliers, potential partners and communities where the company operates.

3. Does the company publish its annual non-financial report, including the annual results of fulfilling its obligations in the field of business and human rights?

First of all, this issue concerns a public report on activities and achievements in the field of human rights. Of course, the company is not required to report on all human rights, but at least there is an obligation to highlight its progress in relation to business and human rights and/or to report on achievements in a certain area are very welcome.

We believe that this self-assessment will open a new page in the development of your company!

This article is an element of an information campaign to promote human rights issues in the aspect of entrepreneurship in Kyrgyzstan within the framework of the UNDP project "Business and Human Rights" (B+HR), with the financial support of the Government of Japan.
 

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The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is one of the leading development organizations in Kyrgyzstan. Since 1993, we have been working in various areas, including inclusive development, environmental protection, crisis response, gender equality promotion, and collaborative efforts towards sustainable development goals.

Media Contact: Nurzhan Alymkanova, Communications Specialist, UNDP Nurzhan.alymkanova@undp.org