Annual Report on the Oecd Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises 2008 : Employment and Industrial Relations.

309 Pages·2009·4.186 MB·English

by  OECD

Annual Report on the OECD Guidelines
Annual Report
for Multinational Enterprises 2008
on the OECD Guidelines
EMplOyMEnt AnD InDustRIAl RElAtIOns
for Multinational
The Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises are recommendations to international businesses
Enterprises 2008
on conduct in such areas as labour, the environment, consumer protection and the fight against
corruption. The recommendations are made by the adhering governments and, although they are
not binding, governments are committed to promoting their observance. Part I of this Annual Report EMplOyMEnt AnD
provides an account of the actions the 41 adhering governments have taken over the 12 months to
InDustRIAl RElAtIOns
June 2008 to enhance the contribution of the Guidelines to the improved functioning of the global
economy. In eight years, the Guidelines have consolidated their position as one of the world’s
principal corporate responsibility instruments.
Every year the OECD holds a roundtable on corporate responsibility, addressing emerging issues and A
n
new developments. The 2008 roundtable, jointly organised with the International Labour Organisation, n
u
focused on identifying how responsible business practices can lead to better employment conditions a
and industrial relations; engaging governments in experience sharing on the pros and cons of l R
e
different public policies to promote responsible business conduct in the area of employment and p
o
industrial relations; enhancing the awareness and performance of the OECD Guidelines and the ILO r
t
MNE Declaration and developing synergies between the responsible organisations. o
n
t
Part II of this Annual Report highlights: he
O
• key findings of the High-Level OECD-ILO Conference on Corporate Social Responsibility; E
C
D
• corporate responsibility practices in the area of employment and industrial relations; G
u
id
• the impact of foreign direct investment on wages and working conditions; e
lin
• development and decent work: new directions for multinational enterprises in shaping a fair es
globalisation; and fo
r
M
• an overview of selected initiatives and instruments relevant to corporate social responsibility. u
lt
in
More information about the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises is available online a
t
at www.oecd.org/daf/investment/guidelines. io
n
a
l E
n
The full text of this book is available on line via these links: t
e
www.sourceoecd.org/finance/9789264014954 r
p
www.sourceoecd.org/governance/9789264014954 r
is
www.sourceoecd.org/industrytrade/9789264014954 e
s
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Isbn 978-92-64-01495-4 -:HSTCQE=UVY^ZY:
20 2009 02 1 p
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Annual Report
on the OECD Guidelines
for Multinational
Enterprises 2008
EMPLOYMENT AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS
ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION
AND DEVELOPMENT
The OECD is a unique forum where the governments of 30 democracies work together to
address the economic, social and environmental challenges of globalisation. The OECD is also at
the forefront of efforts to understand and to help governments respond to new developments and
concerns, such as corporate governance, the information economy and the challenges of an
ageing population. The Organisation provides a setting where governments can compare policy
experiences, seek answers to common problems, identify good practice and work to co-ordinate
domestic and international policies.
The OECD member countries are: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic,
Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea,
Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic,
Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States. The Commission of
the European Communities takes part in the work of the OECD.
OECD Publishing disseminates widely the results of the Organisation’s statistics gathering and
research on economic, social and environmental issues, as well as the conventions, guidelines and
standards agreed by its members.
This work is published on the responsibility of the Secretary-General of the OECD. The
opinions expressed and arguments employed herein do not necessarily reflect the official
views of the Organisation or of the governments of its member countries.
Also available in French under the title:
Rapport annuel sur les Principes directeurs des entreprises multinationales 2008
EMPLOI ET RELATIONS INDUSTRIELLES
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© OECD 2009
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FOREWORD
Foreword
T
o many people, international investment by multinational enterprises is what globalisation is all
about. Promoting appropriate business conduct by these companies is a growing challenge since their
operations often straddle dozens of countries and hundreds of cultural, legal and regulatory
environments. The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises aim to help businesses,
labour unions and NGOs meet this challenge by providing a global framework for responsible
business conduct. While observance of the Guidelines is voluntary for businesses, adhering
governments are committed to promoting them and to making them influential among companies
operating in or from their territories.
This Annual Report on the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, the eighth in a series,
describes what governments have done to live up to this commitment over the period June 2007-
June2008.
The Annual Report is published under the responsibility of the OECD Investment Committee.
The material for this publication was prepared by Marie-France Houde, Senior Economist, with input
from Paul Swaim, Senior Economist and Peter Tergeist, Economist of the Directorate of Employment
and Education Affairs, and from Lahra Liberti, Legal advisor, Sarah Cartmell, Consultant, and Ineke
Litjens, Consultant, and Pamela Duffin, Communications Officer, in the Investment Division, headed
by Pierre Poret, of the Directorate for Financial and Enterprise Affairs.
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE OECD GUIDELINES FOR MULTINATIONAL ENTERPRISES 2008 – ISBN 978-92-64-01495-4 – © OECD 2009 3

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Table of Contents
Part I
Meeting of National Contact Points – An Overview
of Guidelines Implementation
Chapter 1. Report by the Chair on the Activities of the NCPs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Part II
OECD-ILO Conference on Employment
and Industrial Relations: Promoting Responsible Business
Conduct in a Globalising Economy
Acknowledgements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Chapter 2. Key Findings from the OECD-ILO Conference. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Chapter 3. Corporate Responsibility Practices in the Area of Employment
and Industrial Relations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Chapter 4. The Impact of Foreign Direct Investment on Wages and Working
Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Chapter 5. Development and Decent Work: New Directions for Multinational
Enterprises in Shaping a Fair Globalisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
Chapter 6. Overview of Selected Initiatives and Instruments Relevant
to Corporate Social Responsibility. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
Appendices
Appendix A. Declaration on International Investment and Multinational Enterprises . . 263
Appendix B. The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises:
Text and Implementation Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Appendix C. Tripartite Declaration of Principles Concerning Multinational
Enterprises and Social Policy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
Appendix D. Background – The Role of the National Contact Points
in the Implementation of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational
Enterprises. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Appendix E. Contact Details for National Contact Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE OECD GUIDELINES FOR MULTINATIONAL ENTERPRISES 2008 – ISBN 978-92-64-01495-4 – © OECD 2009 5

ISBN 978-92-64-01495-4
Annual Report on the OECD Guidelines
for Multinational Enterprises 2008
Employment and Industrial Relations
© OECD 2009
PART I
Meeting of National Contact Points –
An Overview of Guidelines
Implementation
7