The Grievance Mechanism under the OECD Guidelines

The OECD Guidelins are the only government-backed international instrument for responsible business conduct that provides for an integrated grievance mechanism. The National Contact Points in the adhering states of the OECD Guidelines provide an extrajudicial mediation and conciliation forum for complaints about alleged violations of the OECD Guidelines, thereby closing an important gap in the cross-border accountability of multinational companies.

The objective of the grievance procedure is to reach a joint and forward-looking solution through a dialogue based on mutual trust between the parties, thereby contributing to the effective application of the OECD Guidelines. Such an agreement may cover measures to be taken by the company to promote the future implementation of the OECD Guidelines and/or measures in line with the OECD Guidelines to address negative impacts that have already occured. In addition, the National Contact Point may make recommendations to support the agreement.

Any person or organisation with a legitimate interest may submit a complaint with the competent National Contact Point on their own behalf or through a lawful representative on the basis of an alleged violation of the OECD Guidelines by a company.

A complaint can be submitted to the Austrian NCP in writing using the complaint form, via email or by post.

• Complaint Template_EN (PDF, 892 KB)
• Beschwerdeformular_DE (PDF, 897 KB)
• Formulaire de Plainte_FR (PDF, 795 KB)

The National Contact Point of the state in which the alleged violation of the OECD Guidelines took place is responsible. If no National Contact Point has been established in that state, the complaint is to be addressed to the National Contact Point of the state in which the company concerned has its headquarters. The Austrian NCP may also handle a complaint if there is another relevant interest in handling it and if handling of the complaint cannot otherwise be ensured. A list of all National Contact Points is available on the OECD Guidelines website.

The Austrian NCP checks the completeness of the complaint and may request additional information where necessary. The complaint is complete if following information is included:

1. Name, addreess, email address (where appropriate) and telephone number of the complainant. Complaints may not be submitted anonymously to the Austrian NCP.
2. Name, addreess, email address (where appropriate) and telephone number of the respondent (company concerned).
3. Identification of the provision of the OECD Guidelines the violation of which is alleged.
4. Presentation of the facts from which the alleged violation of the OECD Guidelines is deemed to arise. The alleged violation must fall within the scope of the OECD Guidelines and be specified in the complaint.
5. If the respondent's alleged responsibility relates to the supply chain, the relationship of the respondent with the company that is alleged to have violated the indicated provisions of the OECD Guidelines must be explained.
6. The complainant must be able to demonstrate its legitimate interest in the subject matter of the complaint. The complaint must be submitted in good faith.

The participation in the complaint procedure by a company concerned is voluntary.

A grievance procedure before the Austrian NCP grants the parties a greater degree of control over the agreement than in formal proceedings. Furthermore, a mutually reached agreement is usually a faster and more cost-effective alternative to administrative or judicial proceedings. National Contact Points are not judicial authorities, and their cases - known as specific instances - are not formal legal cases.

The Austrian NCP does not have any powers to issue orders and execute coercive measures. Nor is the assessment of a company's compliance with binding regulations and laws the responsibility or within the competence of the Austrian NCP. The grievance procedure before the Austrian NCP addresses issues concerning the application of the OECD Guidelines. It is not a matter of sanctioning alleged past violations, but rather of critically examining the facts and finding a future-oriented solution that is satisfactory for the parties involved.

Nevertheless, the outcome of the procedure can have important consequences, for example regarding the company's reputation, public procurement and public funding. In Austria, the outcome is also incorporated into the review process of the Austrian National Export Credit Agency Oesterreichische Kontrollbank AG.

1. The complainant has a legitimate interest in the subject matter of the complaint. Interest in the subject matter must be clearly demonstrated.
2. The complaint is material and sufficiently substantiated. A complaint is material if it falls within the scope of the OECD Guidelines and alleges a contravention of one or more recommendations of the OECD Guidelines. A complaint is sufficiently substantiated if the allegations appear credible based on the parties' submissions. Ther must be a plausible link between the enterprise's activities and the issues raised. However, this does not involve nay burden of proof.
3. The respondent is an enterprise. The OECD Guidelines apply to all enterprises irrespective of ownership, corporate structure or sector.
4. The enterprise is multinational. The term 'multinational' is interpreted broadly within the meaning of the OECD Guidelines. The factors to be taken into account include corporate structure and business activities of the enterprise as well as its business form and purpose.
5. The enterprise operates in or from a territory of an adherent to the OECD Guidelines. This criterion is independent of the state of incorporation or headquarters of the enterprise.
6. Ther is a link between the activities of the enterprise or its business partners and the alleged violation of the OECD Guidelines. Ther have been adverse impacts in violation of the OECD Guidelines that are allegedly either caused or contributed to by the enterprise, or are directly linked to their operations, products or services by business relationships.

In addition, the Austrian NCP assesses the relevance of the issue raised in the complaint. In doing so, the Austrian NCP takes into account the extent to which it could contribute to the resolution of the issue and whether its handling of the specific instance in question could contribute to the effectiveness of the OECD Guidelines.

Initiatiation of the procedure

The grievance procedure is initiated by submitting a complaint to the Austrian NCP. Complaints must be submitted in writing by email and, where possible, using the form provided for this purpose, which is available in English, German and French. A Complaint may also be submitted by post. The complaint must include all the information necessary to ensure its completeness. The complaint must be supported by relevant documents and information to substantiate the allegations.

Initial Assessment

As part of the initial assessment, the Austrian NCP forwards the complaint to the respondent and invites them to submit their comments. The Austrian NCP also explains to all parties how the procedure works, its case-handling framework, the further course of the procedure and the possible outcomes of the procedure.

On the basis of the complaint and the comments received, the Austrian NCP conducts an initial assessment to check whether the conditions for accepting the specific instance are met and whether the issues raised in the complaint warrant further examination of the specific instance. The willingness of the respondent to cooperate in the procedure is irrelevant to the acceptance or rejection of the specific instance. If the issues raised warrant further examination, and the criteria for accepting the specific instance are met, the Austrian NCP accepts the case for futher processing in its initial assessment. Otherwise, the Austrian NCP rejects the case in its initial assessment.

The Austrian NCP's decision to accept a specific instance does not constitute a determination or statement, attribution of blame within the meaning of the OECD-Guidelines, or a decision on the merits of the case, but merely justifies a more detailed examination of the issues raised in relation to the OECD Guidelines. The Austrian NCP communicates a draft of the initial assessment to the parties, giving them the opportunity to comment. The extent to which any comments will be considered is in the discretion of the Austrian NCP.

The finalised written result of the initial assessment is published on the website of the Austrian NCP and forwarded to the OECD Secretariat for inclusion in the OECD's public database.

Good offices of the Austrian NCP

If the Austrian NCP considers that a further examination of the issues raised is warranted, a mediation process is initiated. The Austrian NCP offers its good offices to the parties and seeks to mediate between them, look into the allegations and reach an agreement between the parties. The aim is to foster compliance with the OECD Guidelines and develop a sustainable solution in line with the OECD Guidelines. The Austrian NCP offers a platform for dialogue and mediation.

The mediation process is based on written comments and discussions between the parties. A possible agreement primarily depends on the good will of both sides - all parties act in good faith. The parties may also decline the Austrian NCP's good offices. The Austrian NCP may discontinue the grievance procedure at any time if one or several parties are unwilling to engage constructively in the mediation process.

The objective of a grievance procedure is always to reach an agreement between the parties on a sustainable and viable solution for the future in line with the OECD Guidelines and, as a result, the effective application of the OECD Guidelines. Every complaint submitted to the Austrian NCP concludes with a final statement by the Austrian NCP, which is published on its website. The statement is also forwarded to the OECD Secretariat for inclusion in its public case database.

A grievance procedure before the Austrian NCP before the Austrian NCP may have the following results:

• The parties decline the offer of good offices.
• The parties reach an agreement.
• The procedure is discontinued.

Following the mediation by the Austrian NCP, Finance & Trade Watch Austria et al. and ANDRITZ HYDRO GmbH agreed in July 2021 to cooperate in the future. A consensus was reached in the grievance procedure brought by NGOs led by Finance & Trade Watch Austria against ANDRITZ HYDRO GmbH. The subject of the NGO's complaint was a possible violation of the OECD Guidelines with regard to human rights and environmental standards in the construction of a power plant in Laos by ANDRITZ HYDRO GmbH.

The agreement reached in the mediation process provides for joint efforts by the parties to improve the situation of the local population on the Mekong river. The company will respect international human rights and environmental standards, as laid down in particular in the OECD Guidelines, in its due diligence procedures for all future projects. In addition, the company will increasingly take into account current international standards - such as the OECD Guidelines - in relation to human rights, the envrionment and due dilgence in its future corporate policies. A follow-up process to continue the dialogue between the parties was also agreed on.

Conclusion and outcome of the follow-up process

As agreed in the joint statement by the parties, four meetings were held between Ferbruary 2018 and June 2018. Following this, statements on the progress made since the conclusion of the grievance procedure were submitted to the Austrian NCP. In September 2018, a follow-up meeting of the parties and the Austrian NCP took place. Both parties described the follow-up process as constructive and valuable. During the follow-up meeting, the recommendations of the Austrian NCP in the Joint Declaration were discussed. Both sides declared their intention to continue the constructive dialogue.

The Austrian NCP congratulates both parties on the progress achieved and particularly welcomes the intention to continue the dialogue. The Austrian NCP remains available to the parties as a partner on the issues of responsible business conduct and the OECD Guidelines.

The agreement also referred to the OECD Guidelines and highlighted their importance.

Furhter information:

• Joint Statement by the Parties (PDF, 112 KB)
• Final Statement by the Austrian NCP (PDF, 253 KB)
• Follow-Up Statement by the Austrian NCP (PDF, 405 KB)
• Joint Statement signed (PDF, 378 KB) (non-accessible)
• Final Statement signed (PDF, 1 MB) (non-accessible)

On 21 January 2014, the Union of Private Employees, Printing, Journalism and Paper as well as the Production Union filed a complaint with the Austrian NCP against KBA Mödling AG and its parent company Koenig Bauer AG. The complaint was withdrawn following an agreement on a social plan in February 2014.

On 5 February 2008, the Union of Private Employees, Printing, Journalism and Paper submitted a complaint with the Austrian NCP against Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research GmbH & Co KG for alleged violations of the Chapter 'Employment and Industrial Relations' of the OECD Guidelines in the context of the closure of the Novartis Research Centre in Vienna. The specific instance was concluded with the final statement by the Austrian NCP on 17 July 2009.

• Final Statement by the Austrian NCP of 17 July 2009 (PDF, 111 KB)

Congo Mining Holding Ltd. filed a complaint with the Austrian NCP against H.C. Starck GmbH for allegedly violating the OECD Guidelines by illegally extracting natural resources and illegally exporting minerals from the Democratic Republic of Congo. On 26 May 2006, the Austrian NCP issued a final statement to the parties.

On 27 March 2006, the International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers' Association and the Metal, Textile and Food Workers' Union filed a complaint with the Austrian NCP against Global Sports and GTS Beteiligungsgesellschaft. The complaint alleged violations of the OECD Guidelines in connection with a labour dispute at the company. The Austrian NCP accepted the specific instance for further examination as part of its initial assessment and endeavoured to find an amicable solution. On 17 July 2009, the Austrian NCP published a final statement.

• Final Statement by the Austrian NCP of 17 July 2009 (PDF, 98 KB)