노동인권 제고를 위한 새로운 노력

Abstract

The issue of labor rights violations by multinational corporations has emerged as a serious international problem. Accordingly, the international community discussed how to regulate labor rights violations by multinational companies and strengthen their responsibility to protect labor rights. Various efforts and attempts to protect human rights at the level of multinational corporations, global governance and international organizations, and advanced countries have resulted in preventing violations of labor rights by multinational corporations and enhancing labor rights. However, there were definitely limitations. New measures are emerging to enhance labor human rights that can overcome these limitations. The EU Parliament and EU Member States have determined that the essence of the problem of labor rights violations by multinational corporations lies in global supply chains. They intend to enhance labor rights by enacting the Mandatory Corporate Due Diligence Act (Mandatory Supply Chain Due Diligence) to impose certain obligations on domestic companies, overseas branches of domestic companies, and subcontractors for human rights and due diligence. The due diligence obligations of the EU Parliament and EU member states are not limited to domestic companies, but they are also mandatory for foreign companies operating in their countries, which is expected to have a lot of impact and change. According to the EU Parliament's Corporate Due Diligence Directive, Korean conglomerates and small and medium-sized enterprises exporting to the EU are subject to the due diligence guidelines, so they must carry out due diligence on human rights and the environment in their supply chains, assess and minimize negative impacts, and disclose information. The EU Parliament's Mandatory Business Due Diligence Directive applies not only to the original contracting company but also to cases of human rights violations caused by its suppliers.
 In particular, the textile and steel industries, which are high-risk sectors, are more likely to be classified as companies subject to due diligence obligations, so they should also pay attention to the issue of labor rights violations that may occur in the global supply chain. Although it will take some time for the EU Parliament's mandatory corporate due diligence directive to be applied in EU member states, the trend of EU member states and the EU Parliament making it mandatory for companies to conduct due diligence on their supply chains is expected to have a significant impact on international norms. In line with this trend, the Korean government also needs to actively restructure its domestic laws and policies to comply with various international standards, including the European Due Diligence Directive.