Leaders who join the initiative commit to making human rights more than just a risk and compliance issue for their companies – they will actively promote them as part of their company’s commitment to social responsibility.
“I hope that by giving my personal commitment to this Call to Action we can highlight the importance of this topic for LafargeHolcim. We have always strived to be a valued member of the communities where we live and work and a model corporate citizen on a global level. Standing up as a promoter of human rights shall further advance these goals,” comments Jan Jenisch, CEO of LafargeHolcim and member of the Executive Committee of WBCSD.
LafargeHolcim’s approach to managing human rights is fully aligned with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, which establish guidelines for preventing, addressing and remedying infringements of human rights.
Over the last five years, LafargeHolcim has invested CHF 240 million (€226mn) in community projects. In 2019, six million people benefitted from these investments.
LafargeHolcim promotes transformative change in the human rights dimension through such longstanding policies as its Supplier Code of Conduct and its Human Rights due diligence methodology. At the same time LafargeHolcim champions human rights internally, for example by setting concrete targets for diversity and inclusion across its operations. The company invests significantly to support community development, for example by providing education and medical care in line with its human rights agenda.
The Call to Action is part of WBCSD´s CEO Guide to Human Rights (link here), which was released in June 2019, and summarizes a set of principles and actions for CEOs to ensure that their companies effectively advance on defending and respecting Human Rights, boosting positive changes in the lives of the people and communities around which they operate.
With the promotion of the CEO Guide to Human Rights, the 41 signing leaders in 20 countries send a clear message on the need to elevate the ambition concerning human rights.
Peter Bakker, president and CEO of WBCSD, said: "The Guide presents a bold unprecedented declaration by company leaders, whose companies’ actions and policies influence vast global supply chains. We are very happy to see Jan Jenisch from LafargeHolcim personally endorse our global initiative to promote human rights in business and we are convinced that his leadership will inspire other CEOs to support this critical cause for a fairer and more sustainable world.”
