In the second half of 2014, 372 voluntary participating companies in the UN Global Covenant failed to submit their sustainability progress reports for two consecutive years and were removed from the UN's list of participants, bringing the total number of companies removed in 2014 to 657.
Even so, the number of companies that have voluntarily declared their participation in the UN Global Covenant on the principle of sustainability far exceeds the number of companies that have been removed. From July to December 2014 alone, 729 companies worldwide participated in the initiative.
These participating companies have pledged to internalize the 10 principles of the Global Covenant into their business strategies and implement them in their daily operations. The Global Covenant requires participating companies to submit an annual Communication on Progress (COP) report on the implementation of the 10 principles, disclosing sustainability information to stakeholders (investors, consumers, civil society, and governments). The purpose of this policy is to ensure that companies joining the Global Covenant enhance their transparency, continuously improve their corporate social responsibility performance, safeguard the integrity of the Global Covenant as a whole, and increase the exchange of best practices in corporate social responsibility.
The global covenant has 10 principles regarding human rights, labor, the environment, and anti-corruption, as follows:
human rights
1. The business community should support and respect internationally recognized human rights;
2. Guarantee not to collude with those who trample on human rights.
Labor Standards
3. The business community should support freedom of association and genuinely recognize the right to collective bargaining;
4. Eliminate all forms of forced and compulsory labor;
5. Effectively abolish child labor;
6. Eliminate discrimination in employment and occupation.
environment
7. Businesses should support the adoption of preventative approaches to address environmental challenges;
8. Take proactive steps to promote more environmentally responsible practices;
9. Encourage the development and promotion of environmentally friendly technologies.
Anti-corruption
10. The business community should strive to combat all forms of corruption, including extortion and bribery.
For a more detailed list of participating companies in the global alliance, please visit the following website:https://www.unglobalcompact.org/ParticipantsAndStakeholders/index.html
Sources: Environmental Leader (2015-01-20) (Compiled by PIDC)
