Author: Vassilia Orfanou, PhD, Post-Doc
Headline Diplomat eMagazine, LUDCI.eu
More than 1 billion children are touched by global business supply chains directly or indirectly.
The manner in which we carry out business anywhere in the world impacts children. Terms of labor and employment, workplace conditions, pricing, and even policies that limit the ability of parents or breadwinners to provide for their families: All of these business decisions have serious ramifications for our children’s well-being.
In some cases, actions that do not violate the adult’s rights can violate those of children – for instance, we have set up pollution standards based on adult exposure, without even considering for child health outcomes. What’s more, supply chain conditions, sales & marketing messages, digital systems, organizational security measures, the utilization of land & pesticides, and other forms of practicing business also affect children in ways business leaders may not even come to think about.
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) came into force in 1990 and articulates the basic, non-negotiable human rights that all children have. Children’s rights include irrevocable necessities associated to their education, health, play and recreation, family life, to be protected from abuse and harm, and have the basic standard of living. Children rights cover their developmental and age-appropriate requirements that change over time as they grow up.
The relationship between children’s rights and the business world
Children are participants in the business world, but they are equally victims of an environment created by adults. Our predominantly capitalist societies make business omnipresent in children’s lives. Due to the exploitation of children, the risk of their growth or their alteration, or even the destruction of the environment they breath would need to turn companies into major advocates to respect for children’s rights.
Child labor and different types of trafficking are well-known violations of children rights. Children, as active members of a community, are affected by the actions of businesses. Like adults, they are users of goods and services. They are also affected by practices of companies surrounding the misuse of the environment, such as the behavior of companies in connection to global warming, the dumping of toxic waste, and much more.
These actions have a negative effect on the environment, risking not only their health and their healthy development, but also preventing a prosperous future. Furthermore, many kids are illegally and invisibly involved in the production and operation of businesses, as they are objectified as goods being trafficked in different illegal trades, such as forced labor, sexual exploitation, and much more, preventing them from being whole, physically and psychologically adept to live and breathe.
When businesses sit down to review their standards, policies, and practices, children’s rights are mainly overlooked. This is a crucial missing link not just for businesses, but for investors, governments, trade unions, and other decision makers. Bringing children’s rights into the conversation needs a rethinking of the manner in which businesses treat employees, develop and market products, run facilities, provide services, and put influence on their communities.
Being responsible pushing for a CSR policy respecting children should be a matter of concern for any business, any professional, any policy, any investment. All businesses have a responsibility to look at their footprint and assume measures to turn adverse impact into positive outcomes for children.
It is our common goal and duty to protect children’s rights
The key obligation for respecting, protecting, and fulfilling children’s rights, lies with the state. The UN committee on the Rights of the Child is the body charged with keeping an eye on how States implement the CRC, and it also needs States: to protect against third party interference with rights, including by business enterprise. As reported by the committee, state duties to regulate business activities include:
- Legislation to prevent and punish corporate abuse;
- Administration measures such as good departmental coordination;
- Monitoring violations;
- The provision of effective remedy for rights violations;
- Promotion of the CRC amongst the private sector.
Businesses should be obliged to respect children’s rights
Businesses around the world have an obligation to respect children’s rights and to prevent complicity in children’s rights abuses. All companies are needed to undertake human rights due diligence to become aware of, prevent, and address human rights impact. This is the normal expectation of all companies in all situations.
Business responsibility to respect human rights has been universally accepted by governments, civil society, and the business community itself. Besides, it is supported in the three-part framework, “protect, respect, and remedy,” of Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Business and Human Rights, which has been openly welcomed by the UN Human Rights Council. It is also acknowledged by almost very voluntary business initiative and is laid down in soft law instruments like the ILO Tripartite Declaration, the OECD Guidelines, and the UN Global Compact.
In short, businesses have the authority to ensure that no child is worse off in terms of his or her rights due to their actions. This needs proactive efforts on the side of the business to find out and address its potential and actual impacts on boys and girls. This authority applies to businesses personal activities and throughout its relationships linked to those activities.
Business benefits when supporting children’s rights?
Apart from the minimum expectation that businesses respect children’s rights, there are also additional activities that companies may assume to support children whether through strategic core business activities, philanthropy, community investment programmes, or other activities. Below are some examples on how supporting children’s rights can benefit businesses:
- Contributing to a stable and sustainable future;
- Bettering recruitment, retention, and motivation of work-force;
- Attracting investment;
- Avoiding reputational risk and supporting its branding identity;
- Developing good will actions;
- Creating value for customers.
Businesses should ensure all persuasions for business interests is cognizant and not diminishing of children’s rights and work with several partners to further children’s rights including schools, governments, trade unions, and civil society. Businesses have a critical role to play in ensuring that children’s voices are heard and acted upon in business decisions that affect them.
In 2012, UNICEF launched Children’s Rights and Business Principles, together with Save the Children and the UN Global Compact. These principles look at the effect businesses have on children and ways to address them. UNICEF has engaged businesses in more than 70 countries, collaborating with various stakeholders, including industry associations, academia, investors, civil society, and other UN agencies.
It is therefore vital to enhance the monitoring of child labor and to stop all its dangerous forms, and also stopping child trafficking. The international community has already signed existing conventions, such as the 182nd convention about the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the worst forms of child labor.
Bottom line
Businesses should be committed to promoting and ensuring the respect of children’s rights. Through all business projects, businesses should work on many persistent issues, such as child labor, sexual exploitation, and many more. Furthermore, there should be proper channels for children and young workers’ representation in the workplace.
What’s more, consultation with children should always be conducted in a meaningful and ethical way that considers the best interests of the children involved.
Featured photo: Gabriel Frank, Pexels
