OECD Working Party on Responsible Business Conduct
The mandate of the OECD Working Party on Responsible Business Conduct is to promote responsible business conduct in all economies in order to strengthen the contribution of multinational enterprises to sustainable development.
Established in 2012, the Working Party on Responsible Business Conduct is a subcommittee of the OECD Investment Committee and is composed of representatives of all governments adhering to the OECD Declaration on International Investment, which includes the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct.
The OECD Guidelines are the only government-backed multilaterally agreed and comprehensive instrument on responsible business conduct and are aligned with other international instruments such as the International Labour Organization (ILO) Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy as well as the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights as key reference points.
The mandate of the Working Party on Responsible Business Conduct is to foster the implementation of the OECD Guidelines globally. This includes promoting and disseminating the OECD Guidelines, supporting National Contact Points and promoting national and international policy coherence on responsible business conduct.
The Working Party meets twice a year and consults with stakeholders regularly: Business at OECD (BIAC), Trade Union Advisory Committee (TUAC) and OECD Watch.
The OECD has established an e-learning academy for responsible business conduct. The course 'Essentials of OECD Due Diligence for RBC' includes the following topics:
- International expectations on responsible business conduct
- Strategic reasons for companies to implement responsible business conduct
- Key elements of risk-based due diligence
- Recommendations for risk prioritisation and cooperation with stakeholders for effective due diligence
The course is free of charge and takes approximately 2.5 hours to complete. Further information and a link to the course are available here: OECD e-learning Academy on Responsible Business Conduct | OECD
In addition to the basic course 'Essentials of OECD Due Diligence for RBC', further courses are available for the textile and footwear sector, the agriculture and fisheries sector, and the electronics and vehicles parts sector.
Further Information and Downloads
- OECD Working Party on Responsible Business Conduct
- OECD Responsible Business Conduct
- OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct
- OECD-Leitsätze für multinationale Unternehmen zu verantwortungsvollem unternehmerischem Handeln (German)
- OECD-Leitfaden für die Erfüllung der Sorgfaltspflicht für verantwortungsvolles unternehmerisches Handeln
- OECD-Leitfaden für die Erfüllung der Sorgfaltspflicht für verantwortungsvolles unternehmerisches Handeln (German)
Contact Information
Department II/6 for OECD, Sustainability: oecd@bmwet.gv.at