Human rights
BG Group supports the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and has committed
to abide by the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights (VPSHR),
to which we are a signatory.
Human rights issues are relevant to all aspects of BG Group’s business,
from employment rights and supply chain practices to the management of
relationships with indigenous people.
We are also putting in place systems developed in collaboration with a
selection of key contractors to collect data on screening of significant
contractors and suppliers, including whether contracts were either declined
or subject to other actions as a result of human rights screening.
During 2009, we analysed our human rights risk profile and began to develop
an integrated approach to managing these issues which aims to bring together
a number of the Group’s professional functions, including:
- Human Resources, with oversight of core labour standards;
- the Group’s
security and social performance experts, bringing greater consistency
to the Group’s management of security and human rights risks;
- the
Group Contracts and Procurement function, with responsibility for
managing human rights risks throughout the supply chain; and
- the Group Legal function, which advises on national and international
regulatory requirements.
In 2009, BG Group carried out VPSHR risk assessments in Bolivia, India
and Trinidad and Tobago and revised internal implementation guidelines
for the Voluntary Principles based on insights gained over the previous
two years.
The revised guidelines are designed to ensure consistency across the Group
as well as compatibility with external guidelines such those developed
by the international peace-building Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO),
International Alert1.
The guidelines set out how best to report and address human rights incidents
and provide clear procedures for the management of relationships with
police, military and other state security forces as well as with private
security contractors.
BG Group will carry out one further VPSHR risk assessment in 2010, and
will update existing risk assessments for other countries using the revised
guidelines. We will continue to implement management actions in relevant
operations.
BG Group continues to engage with the office of the UN Special Representative
on Business and Human Rights, Professor John Ruggie, both at individual
meetings and through the International Petroleum Industry Environmental
Conservation Association (IPIECA).