Working with companies

Working with companies

Companies play a major role in society by generating jobs, revenue, innovation, goods and services needed to realise human rights. They also have a responsibility to avoid and address negative impacts on the rights of people; be they employees, contracted workers, workers in the supply chain, local communities or consumers. However, too few companies have in place adequate processes to manage their human rights footprint.

In accordance with our mandate, for the past 20 years we have engaged directly with companies in order to improve respect for human rights, including through advisory services with individual companies. When working with companies, we follow a set of engagement principles.

Find our principles of engagement in contracted advisory services here.

On the back of direct engagement with companies, we produce tools and guidance publicly available as well as engage in standard setting and policy work at national and international levels.

In 2021, we phased out our bilateral advisory services with private companies. However, we continue to engage with companies through other means, for instance through sectoral or multi actor initiatives. Read more about our work with business and human rights.

Staff