In response to requests from trade unions, and other independent labor rights and human rights organizations, on February 27 the Fair Labor Association (FLA) voted to require its company affiliates to publicly disclose their supplier lists.

ICAR, Frank Bold, and the Business and Human Rights Young Researchers Summit are pleased to announce the publication of a new report that explores evidence based economic arguments for companies to promote human rights.

On November 30 and December 1, 2018, the heads of state of the world’s leading economies met in Buenos Aires, Argentina, for the tenth G20 annual summit. Despite the tense political context, G20 Leaders managed to agree on the 2018 G20 Leaders’ declaration, outlining their commitments towards “fair and sustainable development.”

During the 4th session of the open-ended intergovernmental working group (OEIGWG) on transnational corporations and other business enterprises with respect to human rights, ICAR and SOMO issued a statement to support article 15.3 of the zero draft which addresses the issue of corporate capture.

A new report has revealed that a third of companies that have supplied uniforms for UK public sector workers, including the armed forces and prison officers, have not reported on what they are doing to tackle slavery in their supply chains.

Sanctions represent an essential part of the U.S. foreign policy toolkit, yet human rights practitioners and advocates often lack the essential understanding of how they work.

And then the corporations came for free speech. On May 31, environmental activists and organizations will face off against logging giant Resolute Forest Products in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

After what seems like months of alleged corruption and pompous disregard for the rules of decorum for public servants, Scott Pruitt has finally landed in hot water. The Environmental Protection Agency Chief’s slick real estate deal with a (former) energy lobbyist’s wife, and other ethically questionable actions, have caught the attention of lawmakers, watchdogs, and the general public.

The International Corporate Accountability Roundtable (ICAR) is pleased to announce the release of its new report “Tools of Trade: The Use of U.S. Generalized System of Preferences to Promote Labor Rights for All.”

For too long, the dominant narrative around the market has been to maximize profit and prioritize redistribution to shareholders, focusing on financial bottom lines and treating human rights, environmental considerations, and governance reforms as externalities. Companies are empowered to roam the world, extracting value from wherever they can at whatever the price – human or environmental.

The Rohingya, an ethnic minority in Burma, have been subject to decades of abuse and persecution by the Burmese military following the country’s independence in 1948. Over the last five years, this military-driven oppression and violence has intensified.

Accountability Counsel, the International Corporate Accountability Roundtable (“ICAR”), and OECD Watch are conducting research to evaluate the National Contact Point (“NCP”) peer review process and identify opportunities for improvement, with the ultimate aim of ensuring that NCPs are functionally equivalent and provide effective access to remedy.

Corporate influence over the global trade and investment regime has resulted in trade and investment policy, agreements, and enforcement structures that favor corporate interests at the expense of human rights and environmental protections. Recently, new political challenges to global trade and investment have emerged, and States have started re-thinking alternatives to the existing framework.

On 17 November 2017, the second Workshop of the International Learning Lab on Public Procurement and Human Rights took place in Geneva, Switzerland. Participants included representatives of NGOs, national human rights institutions, academics, public procurement practitioners, policy makers, and others.

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights, Professor Philip Alston, will conduct a country visit to the United States in December, and has asked interested parties to provide information on the interlinkages between poverty and realization of human rights in the context of the United States. ICAR prepared a submission on this topic to highlight how corporate influence of U.S. trade policies has become a key driver to poverty in the United States.

On June 27, 2017, ICAR, along with the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) filed an amici curiae brief in support of the petitioners in Jesner v. Arab Bank, PLC, which is scheduled to be heard at the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) on October 11 of this year.

The International Corporate Accountability Roundtable (ICAR) and the Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations (SOMO) are pleased to release a briefer on Investment-related Dispute Settlement: Towards Comprehensive Accountability and Inclusive Access to Remedy. 

In May 2017, ICAR and the Corporate Responsibility Coalition (CORE) made a submission to the Australian Parliament Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade's inquiry into establishing a Modern Slavery Act in Australia. This submission was recently accepted and is now publicly available.

The UK Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights is currently conducting an inquiry on human rights and business. In response to a call for written evidence, ICAR wrote a submission on the topic of human rights and public procurement of apparel in the U.K.

Today the International Learning Lab on Public Procurement and Human Rights, a project of organizations including ICAR, DIHR, and the Harrison Institute at Georgetown University, is pleased to announce the publication of its first report, entitled "Public Procurement and Human Rights: A Survey of Twenty Jurisdictions."