Facilitating complaints against companies in violation of the OECD Guidelines

The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises were updated in 2011: some guidelines were brought into sharper focus and several new guidelines were added. In order to support NGOs who want to use these guidelines and to facilitate filing complaints against companies, OECD Watch organised a number of workshops, for instance in Dakar, Senegal. Additionally, OECD Watch has recently published a new brochure that provides a brief overview of the content of the Guidelines and the associated complaint procedure. This brochure also explains how to use the Guidelines to hold corporations to account for their actions. A further new publication is the OECD Watch Quarterly Case Update. This update contains OECD Guidelines cases filed by NGOs and discusses new cases and charts the developments around earlier cases. For publications and more information visit www.oecdwatch.org.

The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises were updated in 2011: some guidelines were brought into sharper focus and several new guidelines were added. In order to support NGOs who want to use these guidelines and to facilitate filing complaints against companies, OECD Watch has organised a number of workshops, for instance in Dakar (Senegal). In June 2012, OECD Watch published a new brochure and the OECD Watch Quarterly Case Update.

Local and regional NGOs in Senegal have been trained in using the updated OECD Guidelines. During a workshop several topics were highlighted, such as complaint procedures and submitting complaints to a National Contact Point (NCP) according to OECD Guidelines. Recent case studies were discussed to give the participants a clear idea of how the Guidelines can be used in practice. At the end of the workshop, role-play was used to teach the participants how to use the OECD Guidelines and how to tackle bottlenecks.

Holding corporations to account

The new brochure, The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises(opens in new window) , is a tool for responsible business conduct. It provides a brief overview of the content of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the associated complaint procedure. This brochure explains how civil society organisations, workers, communities and individuals who have been affected by irresponsible business conduct can use the Guidelines to hold corporations to account for their actions.

Update on cases filed by NGOs

OECD Watch will be publishing a Quarterly Case Update of OECD Guidelines cases(opens in new window) , filed by NGOs, four times a year. This update aims to document the views and experiences of NGOs involved in National Contact Points/OECD Guidelines procedures. New cases and the developments around previous cases are discussed. One of the new cases is: ACIDH and partners are filing a complaint at the Belgium NCP for human rights violations taking place at Compagnie Minière de Sud Katanga mine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Read more about this case and other cases in the Quarterly Case Update of June 2012(opens in new window) .

OECD Watch publications can be downloaded via www.oecdwatch.org(opens in new window) .