Tesco and Wal-Mat are among those who contributed to a new global human rights code set to address and improve social justice in the supply chain last week.
To mark the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, representatives met in Hong Kong to discuss the Global Social Compliance Programme (GSCP) - a partnership of some of the world’s biggest companies to represent a positive development for workers.
Looking at the manufacture of all consumer goods, the programme is the most significant business alliance for social justice yet seen and has strong ceo support.
The partnership includes Carrefour, Metro, Migros, Tesco and Wal-Mart, among others.
The GSCP has drawn up a reference code as the first of a series of tools that will help companies and existing initiatives work together to deliver a common message and reduce duplication and confusion.
The GSCP hopes to effect long-term, genuine change through constructive dialogue between stakeholders and businesses in all industries and countries. International organisations, governments, trade unions, NGOs and consumers are all in support of a new business model.
Tesco’s Terry Babbs, the GSCP chairman, said: “We recognise and share the global challenge set by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Our businesses together touch millions of people either directly through our customers and employees or indirectly through hundreds of millions of workers in our supply chain.
“We are aware of the challenges around human rights, social standards and compliance in our supplier companies. In response we have joined together in an attempt to deliver a shared, global and sustainable approach for the improvement of working conditions in the global supply chain,” he said.
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