All Articles About Human Rights

BSR Insight Article: Responses to Google’s Move in China

Following Google's decision last month to reconsider its presence in China due to concerns about human rights infringements related to security, privacy, and free expression, the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre collected a selection of commentaries and articles on the subject from NGOs, the media, and others. Below is a sample of those responses. Read more →

Posted: February 23, 2010 | Topics: Human Rights, Information & Communications Technology

BSR Insight Article: Should You Stay or Should You Go? What’s the ‘Right’ Decision on Entering or Leaving a Market?

Aron Cramer, President and CEO Dunstan Allison Hope, Managing Director, Advisory Services

Google’s recent announcement to reconsider its business in China has won considerable praise from organizations concerned about the country’s human rights record. This approval stands in stark contrast to the condemnation the company received when first entering the country in 2006. The Financial Times cartoonist Ingram Pinn captured these contrasting perspectives perfectly, depicting Google as the speech-suppressing “Great Firewall of China” in 2006, then casting the company as the lone protestor stopping the tanks in their tracks in 2010. Read more →

Posted: February 23, 2010 | Topics: Community Engagement & Development, Conflict Minerals, Human Rights, Information & Communications Technology

Blog: New Opportunities for ICT and Human Rights

Cody Sisco, Former Manager, Advisory Services

Last week, BSR hosted a meeting for information and communications technology (ICT) companies in our Paris office to discuss the current state of human rights in the industry. Companies from the telecommunications, software, semiconductor, and industrial equipment sectors, among others, attended. It was fascinating to hear diverse companies from across the whole ICT value chain come together to discuss similar issues that they are facing related to human rights. Read more →

Posted: February 16, 2010 | Topics: Human Rights, Information & Communications Technology

BSR Insight Article: Chinese Labor Disputes on the Rise

Pei Bin, Former Director, China Partnership Development

Although Chinese workers have benefited from increased labor rights protection in recent years, the number of labor disputes reported in China has nearly doubled since 2007. This trend is a result of clearer and more comprehensive legal frameworks for labor protection, greater worker awareness of labor laws, and a lack of corporate investments in formal grievance mechanisms. Read more →

Posted: February 2, 2010 | Topics: Human Rights, Supply Chain

BSR Insight Article: Working With Government on Responsible Labor

Ryan Flaherty, Manager, Advisory Services

Through BSR's DR-CAFTA Responsible Competitiveness Project, we recently presented recommendations to the Salvadoran government on how the country can promote company and national competitiveness through improved working conditions. Our benchmarking of global public-policy practices revealed that more governments are incorporating sustainability incentives into their policies. Read more →

Posted: December 22, 2009 | Topics: Economic Development, Human Rights, Supply Chain