4 December 2008
Which companies have made a public commitment to human rights?
Over 230 worldwide on the eve of the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration
To mark the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Realizing Rights and the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre have been encouraging more companies to adopt human rights policies.
Mary Robinson has written to the CEOs of companies on the Fortune Global 500 and from a number of emerging markets in recent months to ask whetherthey have a public human rights policy statement, and to encourage those that do not to adopt one. The full text of the letter is enclosed. Currently over 230 company policy statements appear on the running list on the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre website: .
Pointing to the growing number of major corporations that have made this commitment, Mary Robinson noted, “I am encouraged to see more and more corporations taking a public stand on human rights. This is yet another sign that human rights are becoming part of the mainstream business agenda and that business leaders themselves are prepared to take on their appropriate responsibilities.”
If your company hasa human rights policy statement or adopts one in the future please contact Annabel Short() so it can be added to the list.
Companies currently on the list* (as of 4 Dec 2008)
Note: Companies in bold have policies that refer to the Universal Declaration
ABB
Aberdeen Asset Management
ABN Amro
ACS
Aegon
AGF
Abbott Laboratories
Akzo Nobel
Alcan
Alcatel-Lucent
Alcoa
Alliance Boots
Alstom
Amerada Hess
Anadolu Efes
Anglo American
Aramex
Areva
ArmorGroup
Associated British Foods
AstraZeneca
ASN Bank
Aviva
Barclays
Balfour Beatty
Banco Bradesco
Banco do Brasil
Barrick Gold
BASF
Bayer
BayernLB
BBVA
BG Group
BHP Billiton
Body Shop
Boeing
Bonnier Group
Bouygues
BP
Brambles
British Airways
British American Tobacco
BMW
BT
Cable & Wireless
Cadbury
Carrefour
Casino
Cemex
Centrica
Chevron
Chubu
Cisco Systems
Citigroup
Co-operative Bank
Coca-Cola
Codelco
Colgate-Palmolive
Commercial International Bank
Commerzbank
Compass Group
ConocoPhillips
Continental
Credit Suisse
Cosmo Oil
DaimlerChrysler
Danone
De Beers
Dell
Deutsche Bahn
Deutsche Telekom
Diegeo
DLH
Dow Chemical
DuPont
E.ON
EADS
EDF
EMI
Encana
Endesa
ENI
Ericsson
Eroski
ExxonMobil
Ferrovial
Ford
Fortis
Freeport-McMoRan
Friends Provident
Fujifilm Holdings
Fujitsu
GDF
General Electric
General Motors
GlaxoSmithKline
Gold Fields
Goodyear
Group 4 Securicor
HBOS
Henkel
Hilton
Holcim
HP
HSBC
Hydro
Indian Oil
Intel
Ikea
Imperial Tobacco
ING
InterContinental Hotels
International Power
ISS
Japan Tobacco
JFE Holdings
Johnson Matthey
KBC Group
KfW
Kimberly-Clark
KPN
Lafarge
Lagardère
Levi Strauss
Linde Group
Lloyds TSB
Lonmin
L’Oreal
Lundin Petroleum
Man Group
Marks & Spencer
Marriott
Mazda Motor
Merck
Marubeni
McDonald’s
Microsoft
Mitchells & Butlers
Mitsubishi
Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings
Mitsubishi Electric
Mitsui
Mizuho
Monsanto
Morgan Stanley
Motorola
National Grid
NEC
Neste Oil
Nestlé
Newmont
Nexen
Nipon Express
Nippon Yusen
Nokia
Nomura Holdings
Nordea
Norsk Hydro
Novartis
Novo Group
Novo Nordisk
Novozymes
O2
Occidental Petroleum
OMV
Pentland
Pepsico
Persimmon
PetroCanada
Petrobras
Pfizer
Philips
Posco
Premier Oil
PricewaterhouseCoopers
Procter & Gamble
Prudential
Rabobank
Reckitt Benckiser
Reebok
Repsol YPF
Rexam
Ricoh
Rio Tinto
Roche
Royal Bank of Scotland
SABMiller
Sanofi Aventis
Sara Lee
Sasol
SCA
Securitas
Seven & I Holdings
Sharp
Shell
Siemens
Signet
Skanska
Smiths Group
Société Générale
Sodexo
Somo Japan Insurance
Sony
Standard Chartered
Stagecoach
Standard Life
Statoil
Stora Enso
Sumitomo Electric Industries
Sun Microsystems
Syngenta
Tata
Tasei
T&D Life
Talisman
Taylor Wimpey
Telecom Italia
Telefónica
Tesco
Timberland
Tokyo Electric Power
Tom’s of Maine
Tomkins
Toshiba
Total
UBS
Unilever
United Utilities
Vodafone
Volvo
Westpac
Weyerhaeuser
Whitbread
Wolseley
WPP
Xeros
Xstrata
Yell
Realizing Rights – The Ethical Globalization Initiative
271 Madison Avenue, Suite 1007, New York, NY10016, USA. Tel: +1 212 895 8080
Business & Human Rights Resource Centre
1-3 Charlotte Street, 3rd floor, London, W1T 1RD, UK. Tel: +44 20 7636 7774
See website for contact details inHong Kong, India, South Africa, Ukraine, USA
Text of letter from Mary Robinson to corporate CEOs regarding public commitments to human rights
Over the past ten years I have seen more and more business leaders make the connection between human rights and the success of their companies. Never before has the private sector had such influence and therefore so much opportunity to contribute to human rights.
As one business leader said: “Not having a stand on human rights is not an option – it is necessary for risk management as well as reputational purposes.” It is also the right thing to do. Human rights are internationally-recognised standards. They provide a framework for companies to avoid harm and ensure they treat people fairly and respectfully, wherever they operate.
The Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General on business & human rights, Professor John Ruggie, has drawn attention to the responsibility of business to respect all human rights. In his most recent report, he stated that “companies need to adopt a human rights policy.”
Many companies are doing just that. For example, over half the UK’s FTSE 100 firms have adopted human rights policy statements. They recognise increasing expectations from investors, consumers and other stakeholders on issues such as how companies treat their workers and interact with local communities.
This year, the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, provides an ideal opportunity for companies to express their support for human rights. If your firm already has a human rights policy statement, I congratulate you. If not, I urge you to consider adopting one before December when I and others will give special recognition to companies that have made a specific commitment to human rights.
Please notify Annabel Short () at the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre when your company adopts a policy statement so that you can be added to the Centre’s growing list of companies committed to respecting international human rights standards.
Sincerely,
Mary Robinson
President, Realizing Rights: The Ethical Globalization Initiative
former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (1997-2002) and President of Ireland (1990-1997)
Further information:Business & Human Rights Resource Centre: List of companies with a policy statementtext of each statement
International Business Leaders Forum: “Human Rights: It Is Your Business [PDF]”
UN Global Compact:“Help Mark the 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights”