2018 United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights

Brief description of the presentation: 
This snapshot sessions will be based on a forthcoming report compiled by four participants of our 2018 BHR Young Researchers Summit, titled Good Business: The Economic Case for Promoting Human Rights. The objective of this report is to offer a more nuanced, evidence-based assessment of the ‘business case’ for human rights. More specifically, the session engages with two clusters of arguments: The first cluster looks at the costs and benefits associated with embracing or ignoring human rights in the workplace and in community relations. It provides insight, for example, in the relation between employee loyalty and human rights respect, or the cost of conflict resolution measures in case of worsening community relations. The second cluster demonstrates how governments are increasingly using economic leverage as a tool to promote corporate respect for human rights. The utilization of human rights standards in public procurement contracts or in the provision of export credits will be among the examples of how countries implementing the UNGPs have started to create economic incentives for businesses to respect human rights.

Presentation objectives:
The session will present the arguments underscoring the growing evidence that respecting human rights is not only a moral imperative for business, but is increasingly turning into an economic necessity.