A/HRC/44/32/Add.1
(a)
A review structure that will provide adequate opportunities for contribution by
key stakeholders;
(b)
Proper consultation with legal professionals, parliamentarians, academics,
rights holders and their representatives, national human rights institutions, human rights
defenders, civil society organizations, representatives of trade unions, mediators and other
practitioners of alternative dispute resolution, and developers and operators of non-Statebased grievance mechanisms;
(c)
An examination of research, including other States’ experiences with
facilitating access to remedy for business-related human rights harms through non-Statebased grievance mechanisms.
II. Explanatory notes to the recommended action
A.
Facilitating access to effective non-State-based grievance mechanisms
by strengthening domestic law and policy
Box 3: Key concepts
“Rights holders” refers to the intended beneficiaries of non-State-based grievance
mechanisms, particularly those whose human rights have been adversely impacted (or are at
risk of being adversely impacted) by business activities.
“Stakeholders” include rights holders and their representatives or other persons who have an
interest in the effectiveness of non-State-based grievance mechanisms, such as trade unions,
business enterprises, local communities and civil society organizations.
“Affected stakeholders” refers to people whose human rights have been adversely impacted.
“Potentially affected stakeholders” refers to people whose human rights may have been, or
are at risk of being, adversely impacted.
“Meaningful consultation” refers to an ongoing process of interaction and dialogue between
the consulting entity and stakeholders that enables the consulting entity to hear, understand
and respond to stakeholders’ interests and concerns, including through collaborative
approaches.
“Retaliation” refers to any harmful conduct undertaken in order to prevent or discourage a
person from, or punish a person for, accessing, or interacting with, a non-State-based
grievance mechanism. Retaliation can include physical, psychological and economic harm,
can take place both online and offline and can be perpetrated by both State and non-State
actors. Economic forms of retaliation can include negative actions connected with a person’s
employment including demotion, disciplinary action, firing, salary reduction, job or shift
reassignment, anti-union discrimination and blacklisting. The recommended action
recognizes that, in addition to rights holders, retaliation may take place against “people who
are associated with them”, which may include, depending on the context, family members,
friends, colleagues, trade union and other representatives, human rights defenders, or any
other person connected with a rights holder who may be a target for retaliation as a result of
the rights holder’s actual or potential use of a mechanism. Additionally, retaliation may take
place against “people who contribute to the effective functioning of [non-State-based
grievance mechanisms]”, which may include, depending on the context, mechanism
personnel, those providing services to a mechanism in a professional capacity (e.g. mediators,
case workers, and interpreters), and others who may be called upon for assistance or
information.
“Dialogue-based methods” are communication processes between parties to a grievance
aimed at resolving the grievance and/or fostering greater mutual understanding and trust. The
outcomes of such processes can include, depending on their objectives, a mutually-agreed set
of decisions and actions (as may be the case through more structured processes, such as
5
Select target paragraph3
Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents