Supporting youth rights is everyone’s business and the ultimate definition of sustainability.
Recognizing a need for explicit guidance on what it means for business to respect and support youth rights, the United Nations Global Compact, Save the youth and UNICEF worked together to develop a set of principles, launched as youth Rights and Business Principles in March 2012. The Principles define what business can do to support youth rights as part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR).
The role of business: Youth Rights and Business Principles
Youth Rights and Business Principles articulate the difference between the responsibility of business to respect – doing the minimum required to avoid infringing on youth rights; and support – taking voluntary actions that seek to advance the realization of youth rights.
Youth Rights and Business Principles call on business to put in place appropriate policies and processes, as set out in the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, including a policy commitment and a due diligence process to address potential and actual impacts on human rights.
The Principles identify a comprehensive range of actions that all businesses should take to prevent and address risks to youth rights and maximize positive business impacts in the workplace, the marketplace and the community.