UNGP – Business and human rights | Sustainability 360°

Contents

Overview and origin
2.1. Pillar I – The state duty to protect human rights (Principles 1–10)
2.2. Pillar II – The corporate responsibility to respect human rights (Principles 11–24)
2.3. Pillar III – Access to remedy (Principles 25–31)
2.4. Eight effectiveness criteria for grievance mechanisms (Principle 31)
2.5. Minimum rights to consider
Users and how to apply it
Suggested tracking indicators
Practical example
Notes for use in Vietnam

Overview and origin

Item	Details
Vietnamese name	Các Nguyên tắc hướng dẫn của Liên Hợp Quốc về kinh doanh và quyền con người
English name	UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs)
Issuer/custodian	Unanimously endorsed by the UN Human Rights Council on 16 June 2011 (Resolution 17/4); promoted by the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights; guidance from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
Nature	31 principles that create no new legal obligations but form the globally recognised standard of conduct; the basis of the OECD Guidelines, ISO 26000, GRI, ESRS and many due diligence laws.
Reference scope	All States and all business enterprises, transnational or domestic, regardless of size, sector, location, ownership and structure.

The UNGPs result from six years of work by Professor John Ruggie, UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General (2005–2011), building on the “Protect, Respect and Remedy” framework welcomed by the Human Rights Council in 2008. Since 2011 they have been integrated into the OECD Guidelines, World Bank and IFC policies, and binding laws such as France's Duty of Vigilance Law (2017), Germany's Supply Chain Act (2023) and the EU CSDDD (2024, narrowed in 2026). The “UNGPs 10+” project (2021) set a roadmap for the second decade.

UNGP – Doanh nghiệp và quyền con người · Ảnh: FTS CSRA

Purpose and main structure

Purpose: enhance standards and practices on business and human rights to achieve tangible results for affected individuals and communities. The 31 principles are grouped into three pillars, each with foundational and operational principles and official commentary.

Figure 1. The three UNGP pillars: state duty to protect, corporate responsibility to respect, access to remedy. (AI-generated image) / Hình 1. The three UNGP pillars: state duty to protect, corporate responsibility to respect, access to remedy. (Ảnh do AI tạo)

2.1. Pillar I – The state duty to protect human rights (Principles 1–10)

No.	Group	Content
1	Foundational	States must protect against human rights abuse within their territory and/or jurisdiction by third parties, including business, through effective policies, legislation, regulation and adjudication
2	Foundational	States should set out clearly the expectation that businesses domiciled in their territory respect human rights throughout their operations
3	Operational	Enforce laws requiring business to respect human rights; assess gaps; provide guidance; encourage business to communicate how they address impacts
4	Operational	Additional steps for state-owned or state-controlled businesses or those receiving substantial state support, including requiring human rights due diligence
5	Operational	Exercise adequate oversight when contracting with or legislating for businesses providing services that may impact human rights
6	Operational	Promote respect for human rights by businesses with which they conduct commercial transactions
7	Operational	Help ensure businesses operating in conflict-affected areas do not commit abuses
8	Operational	Ensure policy coherence across government departments that shape business practices
9	Operational	Maintain adequate domestic policy space when pursuing investment treaties or contracts
10	Operational	As members of multilateral institutions, promote business respect for human rights

2.2. Pillar II – The corporate responsibility to respect human rights (Principles 11–24)

No.	Group	Content
11	Foundational	Business enterprises should respect human rights: avoid infringing on the rights of others and address adverse impacts with which they are involved
12	Foundational	Refers to internationally recognised human rights – at a minimum the International Bill of Human Rights and the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work
13	Foundational	Avoid causing or contributing to impacts through own activities; seek to prevent or mitigate impacts directly linked through business relationships
14	Foundational	Applies to all enterprises regardless of size, sector, context, ownership and structure; the scale of means varies with size and severity
15	Foundational	Enterprises should have: (a) a policy commitment; (b) a human rights due diligence process; (c) processes to enable remediation
16	Operational	Policy commitment: approved at the most senior level; informed by expertise; states expectations of personnel and partners; publicly available; embedded in policies and procedures
17	Operational	Human rights due diligence: assess actual and potential impacts, integrate and act, track, communicate. Covers impacts caused, contributed to or directly linked; varies with size and risk; ongoing
18	Operational	Assess impacts drawing on internal and/or independent human rights expertise and meaningful consultation with potentially affected groups
19	Operational	Integrate findings across functions and processes; assign responsibility, budget and oversight; act according to involvement and leverage
20	Operational	Track effectiveness using qualitative and quantitative indicators and feedback from internal and external sources, including affected stakeholders
21	Operational	Communicate externally how impacts are addressed, especially when concerns are raised; enterprises with severe risks should report formally
22	Operational	Where enterprises have caused or contributed to adverse impacts, they should provide for or cooperate in remediation through legitimate processes
23	Issues of context	Comply with laws and respect international human rights wherever operating; seek ways to honour principles when facing conflicting requirements; treat the risk of gross abuses as a legal compliance issue
24	Issues of context	Where prioritisation is necessary, address first the most severe impacts or those where delayed response would make them irremediable

Figure 2. How companies respect human rights under Principles 15–24. (AI-generated image) / Hình 2. How companies respect human rights under Principles 15–24. (Ảnh do AI tạo)

2.3. Pillar III – Access to remedy (Principles 25–31)

No.	Group	Content
25	Foundational	States must ensure access to effective remedy through judicial, administrative, legislative or other appropriate means
26	State-based mechanisms	State-based judicial mechanisms: ensure effectiveness and reduce legal, practical and other barriers
27	State-based mechanisms	Effective and appropriate non-judicial state-based grievance mechanisms (labour inspection, mediation, national human rights institutions, OECD NCPs)
28	Non-state / operational-level	States should facilitate access to effective non-state-based grievance mechanisms
29	Non-state / operational-level	Business enterprises should establish or participate in operational-level grievance mechanisms for individuals and communities who may be adversely impacted
30	Non-state / operational-level	Industry and multi-stakeholder initiatives based on human rights standards should ensure effective grievance mechanisms
31	Non-state / operational-level	Non-judicial grievance mechanisms should meet eight effectiveness criteria (see table below)

2.4. Eight effectiveness criteria for grievance mechanisms (Principle 31)

Criterion	Meaning
Legitimate	Enables trust of users; accountable for fair conduct
Accessible	Known to all intended users; assistance for those facing barriers (language, literacy, cost, location, fear of reprisal)
Predictable	Clear procedure with indicative timeframes, types of outcome and means of monitoring
Equitable	Aggrieved parties have reasonable access to information, advice and expertise
Transparent	Keep parties informed of progress; provide sufficient information to build confidence
Rights-compatible	Outcomes and remedies accord with internationally recognised human rights
Source of continuous learning	Draw lessons to improve the mechanism and prevent future harm
Based on engagement and dialogue (operational level)	Consult user groups on design and performance; focus on dialogue to resolve grievances

2.5. Minimum rights to consider

Under Principle 12: the International Bill of Human Rights (the 1948 Universal Declaration, the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights) and the eight ILO core conventions under the 1998 Declaration (freedom of association and collective bargaining; elimination of forced labour; abolition of child labour; non-discrimination in employment). Since 2022 the ILO has added a safe and healthy working environment as a fifth fundamental principle (C155, C187).

Users and how to apply it

Users: all companies; especially exporters, FDI companies, banks, and real estate, energy, mining and agriculture companies affecting land and communities.

Adopt a board-approved, public human rights policy commitment (Principle 16).
Identify salient human rights issues: rights at risk of the most severe impact, prioritised by scale, scope and remediability (Principle 24).
Assess impacts with worker and community consultation (Principle 18); integrate findings into procurement, HR and operations (Principle 19).
Track with indicators and feedback (Principle 20); report using the UNGP Reporting Framework, GRI or ESRS (Principle 21).
Set up operational-level grievance mechanisms meeting the eight criteria (Principles 29, 31); remediate where you caused or contributed (Principle 22).

Suggested tracking indicators

Indicator	Related principles
Board-approved, public human rights policy in place	Principle 16
Number of salient issues identified; date of last review	Principles 17, 18, 24
% of high-risk suppliers assessed on human rights	Principles 17–19
% of procurement staff and managers trained on human rights	Principles 16, 19
Grievances received, % resolved on time, % of complainants satisfied	Principles 20, 29, 31
Number of cases remediated and forms of remedy	Principle 22

Practical example

Hypothetical case: Solar developer S builds a 200 MW project in Ninh Thuận, on land farmed by Cham communities.

Step	Action	Result
Commitment (P16)	Human rights policy referencing the UNGPs, applied to EPC contractors	Included in 5 contractor agreements
Assessment (P18)	Consultation with 320 households, with interpreters and separate women's meetings	Salient issues: livelihoods, water access, construction site safety
Action (P19)	Livelihood support, preserved access to spiritual sites, subcontractor working-hour checks	100% of households losing land have livelihood plans
Grievance (P29, P31)	Channels via village heads and a hotline in Vietnamese and Cham	28 cases, 26 resolved within 30 days

Notes for use in Vietnam

National Action Plan: Decision 843/QĐ-TTg of 14 July 2023 approved the National Action Plan on improving policy and law to promote responsible business practices for 2023–2027 – Vietnam is the seventh Asian country with such a plan; the Ministry of Justice is the focal point.
Related legal framework: the 2013 Constitution (Chapter II), the 2019 Labour Code, the 2024 Land Law (recovery, compensation, resettlement), the 2020 Law on Environmental Protection and Decree 13/2023/ND-CP on personal data protection.
Vietnam has ratified seven of the eight original ILO core conventions (most recently Convention 98 in 2019 and Convention 105 in 2020) plus Conventions 155 and 187 on occupational safety and health; Convention 87 on freedom of association is not yet ratified – relevant when buyers ask about worker representation.
Cultural context: grievance mechanisms should fit the languages and customs of ethnic minority communities; coordinate with commune authorities while protecting complainants from reprisal.