"To the members of the G20 Employment Working Group", 24. Mar 2017

It is encouraging to see that the 2017 G20 Employment Working Group has chosen the promotion of sustainable global supply chains as one of its main focus areas... In annex to this letter we make a number of recommendations on how to advance sustainable supply chains. In brief, the G20 should call on governments and businesses to implement the UN Guiding Principles. Key steps that governments should take include: Ensure policy coherence and alignment with the Guiding Principles in multilateral institutions that shape global supply chains; Implement the Guiding Principles through national action plans; Lead by example in their roles as economic actors, including to ensure that business enterprises that are State-owned or controlled respect human rights; Set out clearly the expectation that all business enterprises respect human rights throughout their operations, including by promoting effective human rights due diligence in supply chains through regulatory and policy measures; Implement the “access to remedy” pillar of the Guiding Principles; Address the threat faced by a range of human rights defenders who speak up against human rights risks and impacts associated with global supply chains.