To eradicate the many forms of poverty and inequalities, to ensure human rights, labour rights, decent work, gender equality commitments, and climate and environmental justice in global value chains, we need the international community to adopt a binding treaty on business and human rights. In fact, UN member states have been negotiating such a treaty for a number of years now.
This negotiating process builds on political economy analyses: hyper-globalisation, unfettered capitalism and profit-making are root causes and perpetuators of poverty, inequality and ecological distress. Therefore, production processes need more central attention in the set of policies proposed to enhance well-being and human rights – the pre-distribution phase needs to figure far more prominently.
Some arguments for a treaty on business and human rights:
It could strengthen commitment to human rights and labour standards, explicitly the ILO fundamental labour conventions. If bargaining constellations for trade unions and civil society were to improve, this could lead to an evening-out of wage levels and labour and ecological standards along the value chains, by raising minimum and average wages in the low-income countries – ideally to a living wage.
It could put an end to child labour, and lead to gender equality.
It could support community and notably indigenous rights, if it includes an obligation for free and informed prior consent (FPIC).
It could include commitments to climate-related agreements, such as the Paris Agreement, or the Right to a Clean, Healthy and Sustainable, and thus reduce ecological footprints, since business activities would need to abide by those commitments, and governments would need to monitor them.
It could strengthen trade union, civil society and other formats for participation in decisions at firm level, in communities, and along value chains.
In terms of government policy space and autonomy, a treaty could override all other trade and investment-related agreements, including Investor-State-Dispute Settlement.
Victims and survivors of economic and ecological harm could claim and receive compensation.
It could help initiate the much-needed structural transformation of economies at national and international levels.
It could push for a better performance on the SDGs.
Ideally, a race to the top instead of the observed race to the bottom in terms of income, labour, political and social equality, and climate and ecological standards could be the result. This would benefit economic development and human rights in low- and middle-income countries, as well as benefit workers in higher-income countries.
My policy brief gives more examples – and points to some of the obstacles in working towards a treaty that would need to win traction from governments, trade unions, different types of businesses including in the informal economy, and of progressive civil society. It also gives a set of references to use.
The roadmap for eradicating poverty beyond growth
To eradicate the many forms of poverty and inequalities, to ensure human rights, labour rights, decent work, gender equality commitments, and climate and environmental justice in global value chains, we need the international community to adopt a binding treaty on business and human rights. In fact, UN member states have been negotiating such a treaty for a number of years now.
This negotiating process builds on political economy analyses: hyper-globalisation, unfettered capitalism and profit-making are root causes and perpetuators of poverty, inequality and ecological distress. Therefore, production processes need more central attention in the set of policies proposed to enhance well-being and human rights – the pre-distribution phase needs to figure far more prominently.
Some arguments for a treaty on business and human rights:
Ideally, a race to the top instead of the observed race to the bottom in terms of income, labour, political and social equality, and climate and ecological standards could be the result. This would benefit economic development and human rights in low- and middle-income countries, as well as benefit workers in higher-income countries.
My policy brief gives more examples – and points to some of the obstacles in working towards a treaty that would need to win traction from governments, trade unions, different types of businesses including in the informal economy, and of progressive civil society. It also gives a set of references to use.
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