Operationalizing the 'Protect, Respect & Remedy' Guiding Principles

SAI & ICCO (the Interchurch Organisation for Development Cooperation) have partnered to develop a handbook, toolkit and training program to help businesses implement the UN Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights in their supply chains.

The SAI/ICCO handbook and training program will assist in the transformation from principles to practice. It will help companies address questions concerning interpretation, scope, and practical integration of their responsibility to respect human rights. The handbook introduces a six step approach on respecting human rights in international supply chains: 

• Embedding human rights via a policy commitment
• Assessing human rights impact
• Integrating human rights in policies, procedures and responsibilities
• Tracking human rights implementation
• Communicating human rights impact
• Remediating negative human rights impact   

For each step, the implications, rationale and content will be described, with specific cases and practical formats for business to use. Additionally, the handbook intends to provide answers to frequently asked questions, including:  

• I realize that I can be held responsible for the human right violations of my suppliers, but to what extent, and how can I meet my responsibilities?
• I know who my 1st tier suppliers are, but not my 2nd and 3rd tier suppliers - am I responsible for possible human rights violations of those suppliers as well?
• Even if I am responsible what I can do? I hardly have the influence or leverage with my suppliers.
• What human rights do I have to consider when I address my supply chain´? Are some more important than others?
• What instruments are available to make this work?
• I already manage my supply chain via our companies CSR program. Do we meet Ruggie´s requirements already?

The handbook is expected to be released mid-2012. It will provide the basis for training of businesses on how to respect human rights in their supply chains. The first ´in-class training´ is planned at the end of September 2012 in the Netherlands, followed by India and Brazil; more countries are expected to be scheduled thereafter. Additional training will be delivered via SAI's Social Fingerprint^® Online Training Center.