Call for action: support the demand for an HRDD instrument from the EU Commission: A law to protect workers, people, and planet from bad business

The European Commission is finally ready to consider a new law to hold businesses accountable for their impact on people and the planet. These rules on mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence should require all companies, from fossil fuel giants and agribusiness to fashion retailers and electronics makers, to establish effective policies to make sure human rights and the environment are not being harmed in their global operations and supply chains.

The EU Commission announced last year that they would come with a proposal on mandatory Human Rights Due Diligence (HRDD), including corporate liability, access to remedy for victims etc. We feel the EU can and must use its power to set ambitious standards in the fight to hold business accountable for things like union busting, forced labor, land grabbing or toxic waste dumping.

The proposal would be published around June 2021 and until 8th of February, the Commission runs a consultation to collect the input from citizens and stakeholders. INSP!R Asia and its members also contributed since the consultation is open to people across the world that are affected by problems in the global value chains. Since the official submission for an EU consultation is often quite complex (find it here), a coalition of organisations (ETUC, Friends of the Earth, ECCJ etc.) have developed a ‘citizen tool’, to join the consultation by signing their submission here. 

What is “human rights and environmental due diligence”?

It is generally understood as the process for businesses to identify, prevent, reduce and account for the negative impacts of their activities or relationships, which often involve subsidiaries, subcontractors, suppliers and other economic transactions.