You Want Human Rights With That? McDonald’s Serves Up Due Diligence on Human Rights

By Amol Mehra, Esq., and Nicole Santiago

Shareholders are using their voting power to join the movement for corporate accountability and the most recent company to serve up policies and practices on human rights in its operations may be just around the block.

In January, McDonald’s Corporation released its Report of the Sustainability and Corporate Responsibility Committee of the Board of Directors of McDonald’s Corporation in response to a shareholder proposal that McDonald’s explain its processes for identifying and analyzing human rights risks related to the company’s operations, products and supply chain. In corporate social responsibility (CSR) terms, shareholders demanded that McDonald’s prove that they conduct human rights due diligence. Referencing international human rights instruments, including the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs), and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, the report outlines how McDonald’s specifically identifies and assesses human rights risks in its operations as part of its broader enterprise risk management process.

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