BOOK
The Business of Human Rights
Aurora Voiculescu | Helen Yanacopulos | Klaus Dieter Wolf | Doctor Fiona Harris | Doctor Keren Bright | Professor John Hatchard | Mark J. Smith | Doctor Piya Pangsapa | Olufemi Amao | Gary Slapper | Lois Muraguri
(2011)
Additional Information
Book Details
Abstract
In a time when multinational corporations have become truly globalised, demands for global standards on their behaviour are increasingly difficult to dismiss. Work conditions in sweatshops, widespread destruction of the environment, and pharmaceutical trials in third world countries are only the tip of the iceberg.
This timely collection of essays addresses the interface between the calls for corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the demands for an extension of international human rights standards. Scholars from a vast variety of backgrounds provide expert yet accessible accounts of questions of law, politics, economics and international relations and how they relate to one another, while also encouraging non-legal perspectives on how businesses operate within and around human rights.
The result is an essential incursion for a wide range of scholars, practitioners and students in law, development, business studies and international studies, in this emerging area of human rights.
'This book provides a very good selection of the range of issues of corporate responsibility in the area of human rights. The authors offer insightful engagement with a variety of issues based on application to relevant examples in practice and from different perspectives.'
Robert McCorquodale, Professor of International Law and Human Rights, University of Nottingham
Aurora Voiculescu is Senior Lecturer in Socio-Legal Studies and Human Rights in the Department of Advanced Legal Studies, School of Law, the University of Westminster (London). She is the co-editor (with D. McBarnet and T. Campbell) of The New Corporate Accountability: Corporate Social Responsibility and the Law (2007).
Helen Yanacopulos is senior lecturer in International Politics and Development at The Open University. She is the co-editor of Civil War, Civil Peace (2005). She has acted as a consultant to various international agencies in matters of civil society, labour and human rights.
Table of Contents
| Section Title | Page | Action | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| About this book | i | ||
| About the editors | ii | ||
| Figures and tables | vi | ||
| Figures | vi | ||
| 3.1 Carroll’s (1991) pyramid of responsibilities | 45 | ||
| 8.1 The link between human rights and good governance | 145 | ||
| 8.2 The link between corruption, bad governance and abuses of human rights | 146 | ||
| 9.1 Embedding of factors examined to explain corporate governance contributions to peace and security | 172 | ||
| 10.1 Main oil-producing areas of Nigeria | 194 | ||
| 10.2 Approximation of interests of major oil companies in Nigeria | 195 | ||
| 11.1 Post-Fordism | 221 | ||
| 11.2 Old slavery and new slavery | 228 | ||
| Tables | vi | ||
| 4.1 Responsibility in context | 60 | ||
| 4.2 Human rights and labour standards violations today | 62 | ||
| 7.1 US independent, corporate, community and grant-making foundations, 1992–2007 | 124 | ||
| 7.2 Top US foundations by total giving | 125 | ||
| 11.1 Responsibility in context | 218 | ||
| Abbreviations and acronyms | vii | ||
| 1 | Human rights in business contexts: an overview | 1 | ||
| The business and human rights nexus | 1 | ||
| Corporate social responsibility | 2 | ||
| Why human rights? | 3 | ||
| Structure and chapters | 5 | ||
| References | 9 | ||
| 2 | Human rights and the normative ordering of global capitalism | 10 | ||
| Introduction | 10 | ||
| Early UN negotiation attempts | 12 | ||
| A tripartite approach from the ILO | 13 | ||
| Intergovernmental approach from the OECD | 13 | ||
| Moving away from voluntarism | 14 | ||
| UN norms: an attempt at comprehensiveness and normativity | 16 | ||
| The UN framework: from mapping to operationalisation | 18 | ||
| Conclusions | 23 | ||
| Notes | 25 | ||
| References | 25 | ||
| 3 | Brands, corporate social responsibility and reputation management | 29 | ||
| Introduction | 29 | ||
| A marketing perspective | 30 | ||
| The nature and role of brands | 31 | ||
| Brand identity and reputation | 34 | ||
| The growth of CSR | 36 | ||
| Reputation management | 37 | ||
| Justifications for corporations’ social responsibilities | 39 | ||
| The nature of corporations’ social responsibilities | 43 | ||
| Figure 3.1 Carroll’s (1991) pyramid of responsibilities | 45 | ||
| How should corporations’ social responsibilities be managed? | 46 | ||
| Conclusion | 50 | ||
| Notes | 50 | ||
| References | 51 | ||
| 4 | Transforming labour standards into labour rights | 55 | ||
| Introduction | 55 | ||
| Understanding labour standards | 56 | ||
| Labour standards and labour rights | 58 | ||
| Box 4.1 What are international labour standards? | 59 | ||
| Table 4.1 Responsibility in context | 60 | ||
| Table 4.2 Human rights and labour standards violations today | 62 | ||
| The case for labour rights | 63 | ||
| Transnational movements for change | 65 | ||
| The ILO and the Cambodian experiment | 70 | ||
| Conclusion: from advocacy to partnership | 73 | ||
| References | 76 | ||
| 5 | Violent corporate crime, corporate social responsibility and human rights | 79 | ||
| Introduction | 79 | ||
| The global nature of corporate risk-taking | 81 | ||
| Legal implications of the global nature of risk | 84 | ||
| The UK Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 | 85 | ||
| The scale of the problem | 87 | ||
| Who should be prosecuted? | 88 | ||
| When should an organisation owe a legal duty of care? | 89 | ||
| Is it manslaughter? | 90 | ||
| ‘Naming and shaming’ as punishment | 91 | ||
| Evaluation of the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 | 92 | ||
| Conclusions | 94 | ||
| Notes | 96 | ||
| References | 98 | ||
| 6 | Access to medicines: intellectual property rights, human rights and justice | 101 | ||
| Introduction | 101 | ||
| Human rights and fairer access to medicines | 102 | ||
| Pharmaceutical industry accountability to society: responsibilities and obligations | 105 | ||
| Developments in IPRs and the right to health | 107 | ||
| Conclusion | 115 | ||
| Notes | 116 | ||
| References | 117 | ||
| 7 | Foundations – actors of change? | 122 | ||
| Introduction | 122 | ||
| Foundation types | 123 | ||
| Table 7.1 US independent, corporate, community and grant-making foundations, 1992–2007 | 124 | ||
| Table 7.2 Top US foundations by total giving | 125 | ||
| Box 7.1 Corporate foundations – Reebok Human Rights Foundation | 127 | ||
| Box 7.2 New philanthropy | 129 | ||
| Box 7.3 The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation | 131 | ||
| Foundations as political actors | 132 | ||
| Conflicting values | 136 | ||
| Conclusion | 140 | ||
| Notes | 140 | ||
| References | 141 | ||
| 8 | Combating transnational corporate corruption: enhancing human rights and good governance | 143 | ||
| Introduction | 143 | ||
| Making the link: human rights, corruption and business | 144 | ||
| Figure 8.1 The link between human rights and good governance | 145 | ||
| Figure 8.2 The link between corruption, bad governance and abuses of human rights | 146 | ||
| Breaking the link: combating transnational corporate bribery at the international level | 147 | ||
| Breaking the link: combating transnational corporate corruption at the national level by prosecuting the corporation in the victim state | 151 | ||
| Breaking the link: changing the method of enforcement? | 153 | ||
| Some conclusions | 157 | ||
| Notes | 160 | ||
| References | 163 | ||
| 9 | Business in zones of conflict: an emergent corporate security responsibility? | 166 | ||
| Introduction | 166 | ||
| Corporate governance contributions to peace and security in zones of conflict | 168 | ||
| Explaining corporate governance contributions to peace and security | 172 | ||
| Figure 9.1 Embedding of factors examined to explain corporate governance contributions to peace and security | 172 | ||
| Conclusions | 182 | ||
| Notes | 184 | ||
| References | 184 | ||
| 10 | Human rights, ethics and international business: the case of Nigeria | 188 | ||
| Introduction | 188 | ||
| Box 10.1 The Ivory Coast toxic waste scandal | 190 | ||
| CSR and MNCs | 190 | ||
| Theoretical justification for CSR | 191 | ||
| The Nigerian case: historical and contextual background | 193 | ||
| Figure 10.1 Main oil-producing areas of Nigeria | 194 | ||
| Figure 10.2 Approximation of interests of major oil companies in Nigeria | 195 | ||
| Box 10.2 Oil spill at Bodo | 197 | ||
| Conclusions | 207 | ||
| Notes | 208 | ||
| References | 210 | ||
| 11 | Clusters of injustice: human rights, labour standards and environmental sustainability | 214 | ||
| Introduction | 214 | ||
| Corporate responsibility in the context of human rights | 215 | ||
| Table 11.1 Responsibility in context | 218 | ||
| Tentacular capitalism: supply chains in a global market | 220 | ||
| Figure 11.1 Post-Fordism | 221 | ||
| Child labour, slavery and human rights | 227 | ||
| Figure 11.2 Old slavery and new slavery | 228 | ||
| Conclusion | 232 | ||
| References | 233 | ||
| Index | 235 |