Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

AddedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 – point c b (new): (c b) ‘conflict-affected and high-risk areas’ means geographic areas in a state of armed conflict, inter-state or civil wars or fragile post-conflict, areas under occupation and/or annexation, areas witnessing weak or non-existent governance and/or security, such as failed states, areas that experience widespread violence and/or severe violations of international humanitarian and/or human rights law, as well as areas where these violations are systemic and/or state-imposed;

AddedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 – point n: (n) ‘stakeholders’ means: / (i) the company’s workers and employees (including under informal arrangements) and their representatives, the workers and employees of its subsidiaries and their representatives, trade unions, local communities, indigenous people, human rights and environmental rights defenders, civil society organisations direct witnesses and victims of corruption crimes perpetrated by the company and other individuals, groups, communities or entities whose rights or interests are or could be affected by human rights, environmental, good governance adverse impacts linked to the products, services and operations of that company, its subsidiaries and its business relationships through the entire value chain; / (ii) organisations representing the individuals, groups, communities or entities included in (i) or whose statutory purpose is the defence of human rights, good governance, the environment or climate;

AddedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 – point n a (new): (na) ‘vulnerable stakeholders’ means individuals and right-holders groups that find themselves in marginalised situations and situations of vulnerability, due to specific contexts or intersecting factors, including, among others, their sex, gender, age, race, ethnicity, class, education, indigenous identity, migration status, disability, as well as social and economic status; which are the causes of differentiated and often disproportionate adverse impacts, and creates discrimination and an additional barrier to participation and access to justice;

AddedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 – point n b (new): (nb) ‘human rights defenders’ means individuals, groups and organs of society that promote, protect or strive for the realisation of universally recognised human rights and fundamental freedoms; human rights defenders seek the promotion and protection of civil and political rights as well as the promotion, protection and realisation of economic, social and cultural rights;

AddedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 – point n c (new): (nc) ‘environmental rights defenders’ means individuals and groups who, in their personal or professional capacity and in a peaceful manner, strive to protect and promote rights relating to the environment and climate, including biodiversity, water, air, land, soil, flora and fauna;

AddedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 – point n d (new): (nd) ‘meaningful stakeholders engagement’ means an interactive, responsive, ongoing process of engagement with stakeholders, characterised by two-way communication, conducted in good faith and guaranteeing proper implementation of agreed commitments and which involves the timely provision of all relevant information needed by stakeholders; adequate processes to remove barriers to participation for vulnerable stakeholders (such as language, culture, gender and power imbalances, divisions within the community), as well as adequate protection to ensure safety of stakeholders and prevent retaliation and reprisals;

AddedArticle 4 a (new): Article 4a / Heightened due diligence in conflict-affected and high-risk areas / Member States shall ensure that companies operating in conflict-affected areas and high-risk areas as defined in Article 3(cb) respect their obligations under international humanitarian law and conduct heightened, conflict-sensitive due diligence on all their operations and business relations through integrating into their due diligence, a conflict analysis, based on meaningful and conflict-sensitive stakeholders’ engagement, of the root causes, triggers and parties driving the conflict, and of the impact of the company’s activities on the conflict.

AddedArticle 5 a (new): Article 5a / Stakeholders engagement / 1. Member States shall ensure that companies effectively and meaningfully engage stakeholders, in fulfilling their obligations pursuant to Articles 4 to 11. / 2. At each phase of and throughout the entire due diligence process, companies shall be required to ensure: / (a) meaningful stakeholder engagement in an interactive, responsive, ongoing process, characterised by two-way communication, conducted in good faith, adapted to and removing barriers faced by vulnerable stakeholders; / (b) timely and comprehensive provision of all relevant information needed by stakeholders to make informed judgments, in an accessible and transparent manner, including meaningful information about operations, projects and investments and their actual and potential adverse impacts, in accordance with Article 11; / (c) adequate protection of stakeholders from the risk of retaliation, in accordance with Article 23; / (d) a gender and culturally responsive approach; / (e) proper follow-through on implementation of agreed commitments. / 3. The engagement of workers and workers’ representatives shall be without prejudice to Directives 2002/14/EC and 2009/38/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Council Directive 2001/86/EC.

AddedArticle 6 – title: Identifying and assessing actual and potential adverse impacts

AddedArticle 6 – paragraph 1: 1. Member States shall ensure that companies take appropriate measures to identify actual and potential adverse impacts on human rights, the environment and good governance arising from their own operations or those of their subsidiaries and entities on the value chains with which companies have a business relationships, in accordance with paragraph 2, 3 and 4.

AddedArticle 6 – paragraph 4: 4. Member States shall ensure that, for the purposes of identifying and assessing the adverse impacts referred to in paragraph 1, companies take action and decisions on the basis of: / (a) a mapping of the company’s value chain and disclosure of relevant information including names, locations, types of operations, products and services supplied, as well as other relevant information concerning subsidiaries, branches and business relationships; / (b) qualitative and quantitative indicators, including disaggregated data; / (c) independent reports and information gathered through the complaints mechanism provided for in Article 9; / (d) meaningful engagement with potentially affected stakeholders, in accordance with Article 3(nd); / (e) the context of their operations, meaning that companies operating in conflict-affected areas and high-risk areas conduct heightened, conflict-sensitive due diligence, through integrating, a conflict analysis, of the root causes, triggers and parties driving the conflict, and of the impact of the company’s activities on the conflict;

AddedArticle 6 – paragraph 4 a (new): 4a. Member States shall ensure that appropriate resources are made available to companies for the purposes of identifying the adverse impacts referred to in paragraph 1 and may work with the Commission to prepare appropriate resources. Supervisory authorities as defined in Article 17 shall have the power to carry out promotional and educational activities in this regard, including directed at smaller companies not subject to the obligations under this Directive.

AddedArticle 7 – paragraph 1: 1. Member States shall ensure that companies take appropriate measures to prevent, or where prevention is not possible or not immediately possible, adequately mitigate potential adverse impacts on human rights, the environment and good governance that have been, or should have been, identified pursuant to Article 6.

AddedArticle 7 – paragraph 2 – introductory part: 2. Companies shall be required to take appropriate measures, including but not limited to the following actions:

AddedArticle 7 – paragraph 2 – point a: (a) develop and implement a prevention action plan, with reasonable and clearly defined timelines for appropriate measures and qualitative and quantitative indicators for measuring improvement. The prevention action plan shall be developed through meaningful stakeholders engagement on an ongoing basis and be accurately tailored to the context of companies operations and value chain. It shall identify and assess if the company’s business model and strategies are adapted to the due diligence requirements; include a prioritisation strategy based on the severity and likelihood of the potential adverse impact in the event that the company is not in a position to prevent or mitigate all potential adverse impacts at the same time; require engagement with affected stakeholders and assessment of potential adverse impacts of temporal suspension or termination of contracts, in order to avoid greater harm, foresee the termination of contracts when the potential adverse impact is linked to a systemic and state organised oppression and consequently cannot be prevented by the actions of the company and when the company assesses that it would not create greater adverse impact than the one intended to prevent or mitigate.

AddedArticle 8 – paragraph 3 – introductory part: 3. Companies shall be required to take appropriate measures, including but not limited to the following actions:

AddedArticle 8 – paragraph 3 – point a: (a) cease and mitigate the adverse impact, where it identifies that it has caused or contributed to that impact throughout its value chain; provide for or cooperate with full remediation of the damages directly to the affected persons or communities. Remedial actions shall: / (i) aim to restore the affected persons to the situation they would be in, had the adverse impact not occurred, if possible, and be proportionate to the significance and scale of the adverse impact and to the contribution of the company’s conduct to the adverse impact; / (ii) be fairly shared between the company and the partner causing or contributing to the damage; / (iii) be determined on the basis of meaningful engagement with affected stakeholders and may include restitution or rehabilitation, apologies, financial or non-financial compensation, assessing whether vulnerable stakeholders benefit equitably in compensation payments or other forms of restitution and taking measures to prevent future adverse impacts; / (iv) not prevent affected stakeholders from engaging the civil liability of companies and shall be duly considered by courts in civil proceedings.

AddedArticle 8 – paragraph 3 – point b: (b) develop and implement a corrective action plan and measures with reasonable and clearly defined timelines for action, tools and qualitative and quantitative indicators for measuring improvement. The corrective action plan shall be developed through meaningful stakeholders engagement on an ongoing basis, with proper follow-through on the implementation of agreed commitments and be accurately tailored to the context of companies operations and value chain. It shall identify and assess if the company’s business model and strategies are adapted to the due diligence requirements; require engagement with affected stakeholders and assessment of the adverse impact of temporal suspension or termination of contracts, in order to avoid greater harm and foresee termination of contracts when the adverse impact is linked to a systemic and state organised oppression and consequently cannot be ceased or mitigated by the actions of the company and when the company assesses that it would not create a greater adverse impact than the one intended to cease or mitigate.

AddedArticle 9 – title: Complaints mechanism

AddedArticle 9 – paragraph 2: 2. Member States shall ensure that complaints may be submitted by all persons, groups, communities, entities and civil society organisations covered by Article 3 points (n), (na), (nb) and (nc), as well as the natural and legal persons representing them. In case the complainant is a child, a legal guardian may bring a complaint on behalf of the child. / (deleted) / (deleted) / (deleted)

AddedArticle 9 – paragraph 4 – introductory part: 4. Member States shall ensure that companies are providing complainants and their representatives with:

AddedArticle 9 – paragraph 4 – point -a (new): (-a) information on how to access such complaints mechanisms and a publicly available description of the procedures;

AddedArticle 9 – paragraph 4 – point -a a (new): (-aa) legitimate, accessible, predictable, safe, equitable, transparent, rights-compatible and adaptable complaints mechanisms that allows stakeholders, including in particular actual and potentially affected rights-holders, to have a meaningful participation in the establishment and evaluation of such independent complaints mechanisms;

AddedArticle 9 – paragraph 4 – point -a b (new): (-ab) guarantees of non-retaliation, confidentiality and anonymity for stakeholders;

AddedArticle 9 – paragraph 4 – point -a c (new): (-ac) timely and exhaustive information, including clear time indications regarding the steps and actions taken in the context of a specific complaint, the result of the procedure and its detailed reasoning;

AddedArticle 9 – paragraph 4 – point a: (a) appropriate, timely and effective follow-up action on the complaint from the company with which they have filed a complaint pursuant to paragraph 1,

AddedArticle 9 – paragraph 4 – point b: (b) the opportunity to meet with the company’s representatives at an appropriate level to discuss potential or actual adverse impacts that are the subject matter of the complaint;

AddedArticle 9 – paragraph 4 – point b a (new): (ba) full remediation, as referred to in and within the meaning of Article 8(3) point (b), through the complaints mechanism and guarantees that harms that are the subject of the complaint will not be repeated. The remedy shall be proportionate to the significance and scale of the adverse impact;

AddedArticle 9 – paragraph 4 – point b b (new): (bb) unhindered access to the substantiated concerns procedure as described in Article 19, to public judicial mechanisms described in Article 22 and to any other judicial or non-judicial mechanism, regardless of their recourse to a complaints mechanism and whether or not they have used or exhausted the avenues of non-judicial mechanisms.

AddedArticle 13: 1. In order to provide support to companies or to Member State authorities on how companies should fulfil their due diligence obligations, the Commission, in consultation with Member States and stakeholders, the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, the European Environment Agency, where relevant the Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, as well as where appropriate with international bodies having expertise in due diligence, shall issue guidelines on the specific obligations under Articles 5 to 11, as well as on the following aspects : / (a) specific high-risk sectors of economic activity leading to significant adverse impacts on human rights, the environment and good governance, including sectors referred to in Article 2(1)(b); / (b) resource and information sharing among companies and other legal entities for the purposes of preventing, mitigating and remediating adverse impacts in compliance with competition law; / (c) specific processes and resources and information sharing for SMEs to support the application of due diligence in their operations; / (d) mapping of companies’ value chains and efficient processes to monitor partners’ behaviours throughout the entire value chain; / (e) specific adverse impacts, including adverse impacts on good governance; / (f) responsible and sustainable trading, purchasing and pricing policies and practices; / (g) facilitation of access to justice for victims, including regarding collective redress, representati…

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – title: 1. Rights and prohibitions included in international human rights agreements

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – introductory part (new): Such rights and prohibitions include, among others:

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 1: 1. the people's right to dispose of a land's natural resources and to not be deprived of means of subsistence in accordance with Article 1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 2: 2. the right to life and security in accordance with Article 3 of the Universal Declaration on Human rights;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 3: 3. the prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment in accordance with Article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 4: 4. the right to liberty and security in accordance with Article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 5: 5. the prohibition of arbitrary or unlawful interference with a person's privacy, family, home or correspondence and attacks on their reputation, in accordance with Article 17 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 6: 6. the prohibition of interference with the freedom of thought, conscience and religion in accordance with Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 7: 7. the right to enjoy just and favourable conditions of work including a remuneration that provides for a decent living, safe and healthy working conditions and reasonable limitation of working hours. This includes both the right to a fair wage for employees and the right to living income for self-employed workers and smallholders in accordance with Article 7 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 7 a (new): 7a. the right to an adequate standard of living for oneself and her/his family, including adequate food, clothing and housing, and the right to continuous improvement of living conditions in accordance with Article 11(1) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and Article 25(1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 8: 8. the prohibition to restrict workers’ access to adequate housing, if the workforce is housed in accommodation provided by the company, and to restrict workers’ access to adequate food, clothing, and water and sanitation in the work place in accordance with Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 9: 9. the right of the child to have his or her best interests given primary consideration in all decisions and actions that affect children in accordance with Article 3 of the Convention of the Rights of the Child; the right of the child to develop to his or her full potential in accordance with Article 6 of the Convention of the Rights of the Child; the right of the child to the highest attainable standard of health in accordance with Article 24 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child; the right to social security and an adequate standard of living in accordance with Article 26 and 27 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child; the right to education in accordance with Article 28 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child; the right of the child to be protected from all forms of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse and to be protected from being abducted, sold or moved illegally to a different place in or outside their country for the purpose of exploitation, in accordance with Articles 34 and 35 of the Convention of the Rights of the Child;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 10: 10. the prohibition of the employment of a child under the age at which compulsory schooling is completed and, in any case, is not less than 15 years, except where the law of the place of employment so provides in accordance with Article 2 (4) and Articles 4 to 8 of the International Labour Organization Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138);

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 11 – introductory part: 11. the prohibition of child labour pursuant to Article 32 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, including the worst forms of child labour for children (persons below the age of 18 years) in accordance with Article 3 of the of the International Labour Organization Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182). This includes:

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 12: 12. the prohibition of forced labour; this includes all work or service that is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself or herself voluntarily, for example as a result of debt bondage or trafficking in human beings; excluded from forced labour are any work or services that comply with Article 2 (2) of International Labour Organization Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) or with Article 8 (3) (b) and (c) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 13: 13. the prohibition of all forms of slavery, practices akin to slavery, serfdom or other forms of domination or oppression in the workplace, such as extreme economic or sexual exploitation and humiliation in accordance with Article 4 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Art. 8 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 14: 14. the prohibition of human trafficking in accordance with Article 3 of the Palermo Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 15 – introductory part: 15. the right to freedom of association, assembly, the rights to organise and collective bargaining in accordance with Article 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Articles 21 and 22 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Article 8 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the International Labour Organization Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) and the International Labour Organization Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98), including the following rights:

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 16: 16. the prohibition of unequal treatment in employment, unless this is justified by the requirements of the employment in accordance with Article 2 and Article 3 of the International Labour Organisation Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100), Article 1 and Article 2 of the International Labour Organisation Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) and Article 7 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; unequal treatment includes, in particular, the payment of unequal remuneration for work of equal value;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 17: 17. the prohibition of withholding an adequate living wage in accordance with Article 7 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 18 – introductory part: 18. the prohibition of causing any quantative and qualitative environmental degradation, such as harmful soil change, water or air pollution, harmful emissions or excessive water consumption or other impact on natural resources, that

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 18 – point e: (e) affects ecological integrity, such as deforestation, and the intrinsic value of ecosystems as well as the interrelations between them;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 18 – last subparagraph: in accordance with Article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 5 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and Article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 19: 19. the prohibition to unlawfully evict or take land, forests and waters when acquiring, developing or otherwise use land, forests and waters, including by deforestation, the use of which secures the livelihood of a person in accordance with Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 20: 20. the indigenous peoples’ right to the lands, territories and resources which they have traditionally owned, occupied or otherwise used or acquired in accordance with Article 25, 26 (1) and (2), 27, and 29 (2) of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples;

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 1 – point 20 a (new): 20a. the indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination in accordance with Article 3 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and their right to give, modify, withhold or withdraw their free, prior, and informed consent to interventions, decisions and activities that may affect their lands, territories, resources and rights, in accordance with Article 10, 11(2), 19, 28, 29(2) and 32(2) of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and Article 6 and 16(2) of the International Labour Organization’s Indigeneous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169);

AddedAnnex I – Part I – point 21: 21. a prohibition or right not covered by points 1 to 20 above but included in the human rights agreements listed in Section 2 of this Part.

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 2 – title: 2. Human rights and fundamental freedoms conventions and instruments

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 2– introductory part (new): Such conventions and instruments include, among others:

AddedAnnex I – Part I – Section 2– indent 6 a (new): — The International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance;