IOE - International Organization of Employers : Future Resolution of the UN Human Rights Council on the UN WG for Business & Human Rights

14 January 2014

FUTURE RESOLUTION OF THE UN HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL ON THE UN WORKING GROUP FOR BUSINESS AND HUMAN RIGHTS Position of the International Organisation of Employers (IOE)

The International Organisation of Employers (IOE) was actively engaged in the mandate of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on business and human rights from the outset, and endorsed both the UN "Protect, Respect, Remedy" framework and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights as the basis for the ongoing and progressive implementation of the UN framework.
The IOE has also worked very actively with the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights, as well as with other stakeholders, to advance the dissemination and implementation of the framework and the UN Guiding Principles. Against this background, the IOE would like to make the following comments on the future mandate of the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights.

1. The UN Working Group on business and human rights has been successful

The UN Working Group has been very successful. By following the consultative approach taken by John Ruggie, the UN Working Group as a whole, as well as its individual members, have created trust among all the stakeholder groups and prepared the ground for increased engagement. The awareness-raising and capacity building activities undertaken by the UN Working Group, as well as from business and employers' associations and other stakeholders, has resulted in an impressive uptake of the UN Guiding Principles by enterprises and spawned a multiplicity of multi-stakeholder initiatives. The Principles are also being increasingly used by NGOs, Trade Unions, Governments and other international organisations.
The 2nd UN Forum on Business and Human Rights took place in Geneva on 2-4
December 2013 and welcomed more than 2000 participants. This not only demonstrated huge interest and support for the UN Guiding Principles and confirmed the firm engagement of enterprises, but also showed that the UN Working Group is on the right track. The success of the forum reflects the achievements of the UN Working Group.
The IOE is aware that there are stakeholders that seek to broaden the mandate of the UN Working Group to include, for instance, a complaints mechanism. The IOE is against such broadening of the mandate. Such mechanisms are already available, for example via the National Contact Points of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. Moreover, this would jeopardize the work of the UN Working Group: The basis of the UN Working Group's success is the support of business for its work. It is only with the support and

engagement of business that the wider dissemination and implementation of the UN Guiding Principles will be achieved. It is key for the UN Working Group to adopt a constructive and solution-oriented approach because if a confrontational approach were chosen, there is the risk that business would feel disenfranchised from the process. It is John Ruggie's great achievement that all stakeholders came together in one process, and this legacy must not be jeopardised. It would be a tremendous step backwards if we were to return to the controversies of pre-Ruggie times.

2. Continue the mandate of the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights

The mandate of the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights should be confirmed and prolonged for another three years. The topic of business and human rights is too important to halt the process. Moreover, it was never envisaged that after three years the issue of business and human rights would be settled. The success of the UN Working Group confirmed that the three work streams pursued (global dissemination, promoting implementation, and embedding the UN Guiding Principles in global governance frameworks) are the right approach and should be continued. It is important that the attention of the UN Working Group is equally focused on all three pillars of the "protect-respect-remedy" framework.

3. Increase the resources of the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights

The UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights, as well as the supporting unit at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, need the necessary resources to fulfil their mandate and meet the expectations of stakeholders around the world. This means that the availability of resources needs to be improved. Governments must further commit to support the UN Working Group not only morally, but also financially. It would be a great disappointment if the UN Working Group jointly with the supporting unit in the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights could not deliver because of financial constraints. The UN Working Group has proven its effectiveness and the impact it can have. This should incentivise more governments to fund its activities.
The IOE and its 150 member federations in 143 countries around the world are highly committed to continuing to support the UN Working Group in the promotion of the UN Guiding Principles. The IOE calls on the members of the UN Human Rights Council to do the same by prolonging the mandate of the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights as its stands and by increasing its resources.
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