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This essay explores the united nations guiding principles on business and human rights, which outline the state duty to protect human rights, the corporate responsibility to respect human rights, and the provision of effective remedies for victims. Each pillar and their relevance to businesses, using examples of human rights abuses and the measures states and businesses can take to prevent and address them.
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The Role of Human Rights in Business
Dilnura Khamidova Webster University, Fall 2020
The Role of Human Rights in Business Business activities are essential to the development of societies and individuals and to the realization of some of their rights, including decent work, an adequate standard of living and the right to health. However, in many parts of the world, unregulated entrepreneurship and irresponsible business can have a negative impact on human rights. To tackle human rights abuses in business, in 2011, after six-year mandate of the Special Representative to the Secretary General (SRGS), the United Nations Human Rights Council adopted The Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs). The SRGS elaborated a framework contained three pillars: the state duty to protect human rights, the corporate responsibility to respect human rights and free access to effective remedies for victims. This essay will examine each pillar and their relevance to business. The first pillar of the framework says that states are responsible for protecting human rights from the third parties, including businesses. Protection of human rights and freedoms is the responsibility of the state and must be carried out using a system of norms, principles, and various laws. Defending against human rights abuses includes taking the necessary measures to prevent, investigate and punish companies that violated these rights and compensate victims of human rights violations. States must make it clear what they expect from companies in respect of human rights. In carrying out their activities to protect human rights, governments should require businesses to respect all human rights and evaluate their performance periodically. The second pillar is about business enterprises’ duty to defend human rights. Every company, regardless of its industry, has an impact on human rights. Companies can positively or negatively affect the full range of human rights, even including issues such as discrimination, sexual harassment, work safety, freedom of assembly and association, violence, torture, freedom of speech, privacy, decent living standards, food, education and accommodation. It so happened that all human rights issues were always dealt with by the government, not the private sector. However, business must respect all internationally recognized human rights because business must be held responsible for harm done to people. Guiding Principles (GP) 11 says that the
The Role of Human Rights in Business References Hughes-Jennet, J. (2019). The Political Quarterly, 90 (3), July-September, 457-461.