The Mission

The mission of the Responsible Contracting Project (RCP) is to improve human rights in global supply chains through innovative contracting practices. We develop and disseminate practical contractual tools to support more cooperative relations between supply chain firms and better human rights outcomes for workers.

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Our interdisciplinary team of experts works hand in hand with various stakeholders—businesses, industry associations, investors, policymakers, civil society organizations, and transparency initiatives—to socialize our Responsible Contracting Toolkit (“the RCP Toolkit”) and facilitate the integration of its three core principles into supply chain contracting practices and processes.

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The RCP Toolkit advances a major shift in contract design to align more closely with the principles of human rights due diligence (HRDD) enshrined in the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Business Conduct (OECD Guidance). The Toolkit, along with our guidance on its implementation, is made freely available here.

 

With human rights and labor practices coming under increasing regulatory scrutiny, particularly in the E.U. and the U.S., new tools are needed to effectively prevent and address adverse human rights impacts in global supply chains. The Responsible Contracting approach, which promotes shared-responsibility principles, focuses on improving the role of contracts in this process.