Human Rights report Creating a fairer and more socially inclusive world 2020
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Human Rights
report
Creating a fairer and more
socially inclusive world
2020
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 1
Welcome to our Human
Rights report 2020
We made a commitment in 2014 to disclose our efforts and challenges in
implementing the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
This is a report on our progress.
In 2021 we announced a wide-ranging We believe that human rights are at This report reflects our belief that
set of commitments and actions to help the heart of sustainable business, and transparency and accountability must
build a more equitable and inclusive our human rights work does not exist in underpin the advancement of human
society. All these ambitions – including isolation within Unilever. It is increasingly rights. We hope it will help foster the
raising living standards, creating integrated throughout the business, with engagement and discussion with
opportunities through inclusivity, and our markets, brands and people in all stakeholders that have been crucial to
preparing people for the future of work functions continually improving the ways our progress so far – and contribute to
– are founded on the principle of respect they advance respect for human rights. a global movement in which businesses
for human rights. This report is therefore not exhaustive: advance and promote human rights for
it can only give a snapshot of the work people everywhere.
In this report we give an outline of the
that is done by people and teams across
work we have done since 2014 to build
Unilever, every day, all over the world.
those foundations by embedding the
We know that our journey is not over.
respect and promotion of human rights
Human rights issues still occur in our
into every function, role and corner of
value chain, and there is much more we
our organisation – and of our approach
need to do to address them. Respect
to continuing our momentum in the
for human rights will continue to drive
future. We describe the progress we’ve
Unilever’s approach in the years to come.
made in addressing our salient human
rights issues, and discuss the challenges
we continue to face as well as the
lessons we have learnt.
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 3
Contents
Welcome from Alan Jope, CEO 5
Introduction from Marcela Manubens,
Global VP, Integrated Social Sustainability 6
Our strategy 8
Our salient human rights issues 20
Spotlight on issues 46
Brands with purpose 60
Responsible and socially
sustainable business 66
Appendices I–VIII 82–96
4 UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020
Our approach
Welcome from
Alan Jope, CEO
Putting our purpose into action.
Building a fairer world.
At the heart of our business strategy is can take to address the social inequality
the vision of building a fairer, more that, alongside climate change, is the “The era of radical
socially inclusive world. We’re greatest collective challenge the world transparency is coming,
determined to turn that vision into faces today. and I welcome it.”
action – and that means everything we
With our commitment to purpose
do through our business and our brands Alan Jope
and brands that reach billions
must be underpinned by an absolute Unilever CEO
every day, Unilever can, and must,
commitment to respect human rights.
make a positive difference.
If we ever needed reminding, 2020
As this report describes, we’ve made
showed us again and again why
good progress already in embedding
equity and human rights matter so
human rights in our business – and
much. Around the world, social divides
while we’re far from finished, we have
widened, inequalities deepened – and
a firm foundation to build on through
the COVID-19 pandemic threatened
our wider ambitions of raising living
livelihoods and the rights of workers.
standards, tackling harmful social
It’s clearer than ever that decisive and norms, pioneering new employment
collective action is needed to build a models, and being a beacon of equity,
society that helps to improve livelihoods, inclusion and diversity.
embraces diversity, nurtures talent,
This work will continue – both within our ‘footprint’ is sustainable, socially as well
and offers opportunities for everyone.
business and value chain, and through as environmentally. The era of radical
So, in January 2021, we announced a
our network of stakeholders among transparency is coming, and I welcome
set of commitments and actions that
suppliers, governments, civil society, it – because it will add even more
will take our business to the next level
unions and others. momentum to our brands in their drive
when it comes to tackling inequality and
to be a force for good. And brands with
unfairness. We’ve made a range of key And it is a journey we will take with
purpose drive growth.
commitments – including ensuring that consumers, too. They want to know
everyone who directly provides goods that we source, make, transport and We invite all our stakeholders to read
and services to Unilever earns at least a advertise our products responsibly. this report, share their feedback, and
living wage or income by 2030, which we Our brands want to lead the way in continue to help us respect and promote
believe is one of the strongest actions we knowing, and showing, that their human rights in everything we do.
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 5
Our approach
Introduction from
Marcela Manubens
The world changed in 2020 – both in by wider global trends. We know One of those drivers is poverty wages,
terms of the realities of life for millions that the economic disruption caused which deny people a decent standard of
of people, and in the way we as citizens by COVID-19 could impact working living and trap them in cycles that leave
view our lives. conditions in supply chains, for example, them vulnerable to many human rights
as rising unemployment and insecurity issues, so we’re committed to ensuring
As we build back better from COVID-19,
put pressure on wages, working hours, that everyone who directly provides
we must make sure the world changes
safety and other fundamental workers’ goods and services to the company
again in 2021– for the better. We need
rights. We’re also seeing transformative earns at least a living wage or income
to stand up for the opportunity to build
changes to the world of work, brought by 2030.
a fairer, more socially inclusive world
about by automation, digitisation and
– and stand against any trends that Inequality is also deepened when
new business models. At the same time,
deepen divides or undermine respect marginalised groups are held back
movements like Black Lives Matter have
for human rights. And we must hold on from fulfilling their potential – so we’ve
highlighted once again that the journey
to what the pandemic has reminded embarked on a range of actions to
to equity, inclusion, diversity and social
us – how valuable life and health are, create opportunities through inclusion.
justice is far from over.
how much we treasure our families And we’ve set out a clear path to
and those around us, and how much generate and sustain employability, by
we can achieve when we work together Towards fairness, equity preparing our employees and people
with purpose. and gender equality beyond our organisation for the societal
and technological changes that are
Building that better world will take
Business has to take action to tackle the taking place.
courage, commitment, and co-operation
– but I am convinced it is both possible issues of unfairness and exploitation, In this work, we will be able to build on
and essential. and Unilever is setting a course for our progress over recent years. Our
the future that is underpinned by an ten-year Unilever Sustainable Living
unfaltering commitment to respecting Plan (USLP), which came to an end in
The journey is far from over human rights. 2020, drove positive social impacts
Our business strategy includes key goals within and beyond our business, and
While there is no doubt progress has
announced in 2021 that are designed from 2014 included transformational
been made on human rights, both in
to tackle social inequality and the goals in the areas of Opportunities
society and in our business, the risks to
drivers that make it so entrenched in for Women, Fairness in the Workplace
human rights have not gone away. In
our societies. and Inclusive Business. These goals
some areas, they are being highlighted
enabled pioneering work in areas
6 UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020
such as combating violence against This report aims to show the steps we
women, tackling harmful stereotypes, have taken on our journey so far. We
and ensuring a living wage for all share what we have learnt, and identify
our employees by 2020 – work that some of the challenges we have
often anticipated trends we see overcome – while acknowledging that
magnified today, as the calls for gender there are areas where we still have
empowerment, equality, and equity much more to do and learn. I am
are increasingly, and often belatedly, confident that, as part of a community
being heard in our societies. And this underpinned by respect for human
work – which continues at the heart of rights, we can continue to progress and
our strategy – could only make progress build a better future. And on a personal
because it is built on the foundation note, I would like to thank everyone in
of advancing human rights across our that community of colleagues and
operations and extended supply chain. critical friends; it has been a privilege to
be part of such an extraordinary journey
over the last seven years.
Wiring our business to drive
“Harnessing the scale
respect for human rights
and reach of Unilever,
As this report describes, building that Marcela Manubens we are absolutely
foundation has meant wiring respect for Global Vice President for Integrated committed to advancing
human rights into every aspect of the Social Sustainability, Unilever human rights around the
business. That was no small challenge.
We employ 155,000 people in our world. Regardless of
operations, and many millions play a what progress we may
role in our value chain. We have sales in have already made, we
more than 190 countries, each of which
is socially, culturally and legally distinct.
now all need to redouble
our efforts, and continue
To make progress we have had to
engage and establish a community of
to actively drive an
action. That applies within Unilever, environment where it’s
ensuring that human rights were not safe to speak up,
siloed in one function, but were the
collectively and
responsibility of everyone, in their
everyday jobs. It also applies beyond individually.”
the business, where our partnerships
with civil society and UN agencies and
our engagement with peer companies Marc Engel
and other stakeholders have been vital, Chief Supply Chain
both in terms of our ability to make a Officer, Unilever
difference on the ground, and to our
understanding of the issues.
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 7
Our strategy
PHASE I PHASE II PHASE III
Setting our social Building capacity Moving from
sustainability and public ‘do no harm’
ambition reporting to ‘do good’
We set our social sustainability We created awareness and drove With the foundational human
ambition and created a new engagement through training rights work well established,
human rights pillar for our USLP and the effective implementation our focus has broadened to
– Fairness in the Workplace. We of our expanded Human Rights promoting and driving best
strengthened Unilever’s human policy framework and related practices in partnership with
rights policy framework across programmes across functions and others. By the end of 2020, we
functions and geographies to geographies. We delivered on our had made important progress in
include new policies aimed at commitments, including public moving from ‘do no harm’ to ‘do
guiding our relationships with reporting under the UN Guiding good’. This will be the theme and
Unilever employees, suppliers, Principles Reporting Framework. strategy for our new Compass
partners and stakeholders. ambition, described on page 11.
STATUS: ACHIEVED STATUS: ACHIEVED STATUS: ADVANCED
8 UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020
We describe our work on governance in
PHASE IV the governance section of this report.
Driving sustainable Committed to the UN Guiding
Principles Reporting Framework
business and
demonstrating Our first Human Rights Report 2015, our
progress update report in 2017 and this
its value current report have all followed the UN
Guiding Principles Reporting Framework.
The next phase of our approach is
founded on the fact that ‘people’
ENHANCING
LIVELIHOODS, HUMAN Human Rights
progress
and ‘planet’ are inextricably ADVANCING RIGHTS report
linked with sustainable business HUMAN PROGRESS
REPORT 2017
success - and that economic, RIGHTS 2020
social and environmental HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2015
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS PROGRESS REPORT 2017 1
sustainability, anchored on
human rights, are increasingly
recognised by financial markets
as the only long-term business
strategy. The respect and
promotion of human rights must
be mainstreamed and embedded
in every new business model. We
will continue to demonstrate the
value and positive impact of our
approach to all stakeholders,
including investors.
STATUS: IN PROGRESS
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 9
Our strategy
Our five focus areas
We have consistently adopted five areas of focus for our work
in embedding human rights across our business.
Our five focus areas have become Shared Responsibility (previously These new business models carry
mainstream ways of working for described as “Collective responsibility with them the dangers of fewer social
responsible business. models”) proposes a coordinated protections for workers. If we want to
response by businesses, governments, have a less polarised world, we need
Transparency is critical in allowing us
international organisations, to understand these issues to advance
to discuss the root causes of human
philanthropic groups, unions and other new and better business models. We
rights concerns and abuses, so we can
interested parties to devise collective need to ask ourselves what it means to
develop effective solutions. Benchmarks
solutions and share the financial costs put human rights front and centre of
and indices increase in importance
of addressing the most entrenched new business models and ensure that
alongside product information apps and
human rights problems in complex every job is a ‘good’ job, and meets
labels that disclose the social impacts
supply chains. Key to this is making social protection requirements such as
of products which trace supply chains.
these problems visible and addressing those of the ILO core conventions. The
Technology will continue to drive and
not just the problem itself but also the role of financial markets and investors
support increased transparency.
underlying cause. By taking an industry- will be critical as we build back better
Stakeholder consultation has become wide approach and acting together, as capitalism evolves. Meanwhile we
integral to our way of working and our our progress is likely to be quicker and continue to build capability within our
multi-stakeholder value creation model more sustainable. operations and throughout our value
– as shown by our extensive internal chain, so that people can recognise and
Through our partnerships with other
and external consultation in advance act on human rights issues. This includes
companies, civil society organisations,
of the launch of our new Compass improving people’s access to grievance
governments, development agencies
commitments (see page 11). We’re mechanisms and remedy, which play
and multinational initiatives, we
committed to a frank and open dialogue a critical role in opening channels for
continue to scale up our efforts to
with all our stakeholders about progress, dialogue, investigation, problem solving
promote universal human rights
challenges and solutions, so that we and, when required, providing remedy.
principles, create positive social impact
can take combined action. We carry
and search for solutions that build on More information on transparency and
out independent human rights impact
local knowledge, lead to better decisions reporting can be found in Appendix VI.
assessments where engagement with
and create lasting change.
stakeholders and rights-holders is an
integral element. Stakeholder dialogue As 2020 has shown, the world of business
informs our work. is changing fast, with an increased
focus on e-commerce and automated
factories, greater flexibility and platform
or gig employment.
10 UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020Our strategy
Building a more equitable
and inclusive society,
founded on human rights
At the heart of our business strategy is the
“There is much to
ambition to help build a more equitable
welcome in these new
and inclusive society by raising living commitments from
standards across our value chain, creating Unilever, not least its
opportunities through inclusivity, and robust readiness to give
real substance to the
preparing people for the future of work.
notion of ‘fair value’
This can only be achieved based on a through its supply chains,
foundation of respect for human rights. and to do so in a way
that gives equal weight
Accelerating our ambition Taking action against to social justice as it
through our social compass social inequality does to climate justice
– across a decade that
We know that social inequality and Among a wide range of social ambitions will undoubtedly
climate change remain the biggest that show how our journey to embed decide the future
challenges of our time – so in early respect for human rights has driven our
2021 we announced commitments strategy, we have committed to:
of humankind.”
and actions that would take us a step
– ensure that everyone who directly
further towards the fairer and more
provides goods and services to the
inclusive world we want to see. These Jonathon Porritt
company earns at least a living
social ambitions build on our Unilever Founding Director of Forum
wage or income, by 2030
Sustainable Living Plan which ran until for the Future, leading
2020 and are informed and driven by – spend €2 billion annually with suppliers sustainability expert and
our continuing journey to embed human owned and managed by people from member of the Unilever
rights across the company, making under-represented groups, by 2025 Sustainability Advisory Council
human rights the foundation of our
– pioneer new employment models for
business strategy.
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 11our employees, and equipping 10 million evolution of our human rights strategy to our direct employees. As we extend
young people with essential skills to from ‘doing no harm’ to ‘doing good’. our ambition, we will focus on the most
prepare them for job opportunities, vulnerable workers in manufacturing and
A living wage is sufficient to afford a
by 2030 agriculture, working with stakeholders
decent standard of living for a family’s
to create systemic solutions to raising
basic needs including food, water,
living standards through purchasing
Focus on a living wage housing, education, healthcare,
practices, collaboration and advocacy
transportation, clothing and other
wherever we operate. Our approach to
One of our key commitments is that essential needs including provision for
extending our ambition on living wages
everyone who directly provides goods unexpected events.
beyond our direct employees builds on
and services to Unilever will earn a living
Enabling people to earn a living our requirement, enshrined in our RSP,
wage or a living income by 2030.
wage will support and help stimulate that our suppliers must pay their workers
We believe this is a vital contribution to economic recovery in the communities the legal minimum wage or prevailing
the global effort to eradicate poverty where we operate. This in turn will fuel industry standard, whichever is higher.
wages from value chains, and an consumer demand and kickstart the
We describe our work in this area in
enabler for advancing respect for human engine of responsible and sustainable
Fair wages, page 25.
rights in many areas. And it is a critical economic growth.
step forward for the work we’ve done
We have already achieved our
since 2014 to advance human rights
commitment to providing a living wage
throughout our value chain, showing the
“The right to an adequate standard of “Inclusive growth relies on business
living is a fundamental human right sharing their profits and therefore
– sadly one that many of millions of ensuring broader prosperity built
people around the world are unable to through labour. A minimum living wage
access. Decent work, enough to is fundamental to escape poverty,
adequately maintain yourself and your ensure dignity of work and to facilitate
family not only helps people escape the capacity for working families
poverty but helps economic and social to participate in sustainable economies.
development too. So I commend Unilever’s leadership on this
Unilever for its foresighted commitment commitment along with their
as it continues the evolution of its unwavering support for mandated
social ambition, founded on the human rights due diligence is a
respect for human rights.” social platform that all business
must implement.”
Professor John Ruggie
Harvard University, Former U.N. Secretary General’s Sharan Burrow
Special Representative for Business and Human Rights, ITUC General Secretary
member of the Unilever Sustainability Advisory Council
12 UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020Our strategy
Looking to the future
We want to see economies that provide people with decent
jobs and sustainable livelihoods through a fair distribution of
income and wealth. These economies help build social cohesion
and create opportunities for inclusive growth and development
that is good for both society and business. We are taking a
holistic approach to tackling social challenges, and we will
deliver this approach across our entire business.
As we look ahead at the future of our business, we can see both challenges and
opportunities in the field of human rights work and reporting. In this section we
look at some of the trends that we believe will shape the future of our work.
How do we ensure How do we support How do we improve
a fairer future for human rights due our measurement
workers? diligence? and reporting so
we can see, and
share, our impact
on people’s lives?
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 13The trend
How do we ensure Our four principles for
The world of work is changing fast. More
a fairer future for responsible automation:
and more people are hired as contract
workers? workers rather than in traditional Our responsibility as an enterprise
full-time roles, accelerating the move operating in local communities.
towards a gig economy. At the same Business decisions impact those
time, increasing automation continues communities and they need to be
to change people’s roles and create taken with integrity and respect.
shifts in the demand for workers and
for certain types of employment. Both Our commitment to support people
trends threaten to converge in ways to increase their employability and
that weaken people’s access to their entrepreneurship and create new
rights, including their right to freedom of opportunities.
association. This risk is compounded by Our openness to establishing
many other factors, including legislation transparent communication
that bans or hinders trade unions and with our employees, unions, the
social practices that shape perceptions community and other relevant
around union activity. stakeholders.
We have seen these risks to workers’ Our values of integrity, respect,
rights increase as economies are responsibility and pioneering.
disrupted by COVID-19.
Our action
We recognise the shifts that are governments and academia, as well
taking place in the workplace, and as working with trade unions. We have
our responsibility to respect the rights Future of Work plans tailored for each
of workers in our business and supply country in which we operate, supported
chain. We need to ask ourselves how we by our Social Impact Playbook, which
put human rights front and centre of new will guide implementation. In addition
“Gig economy in business models – particularly as we to skills development, we will pioneer
Britain doubles, contribute to building back better after new employment models and provide
accounting for COVID-19. our people with flexible employment
options, by 2025.
4.7 million workers.” We’ve committed to ensuring that
all our employees are reskilled or Any country transformation plan must
upskilled to have a future-fit skillset, include a responsible automation plan
he Guardian newspaper
T
by 2025. While we may not be able to to manage its social impact responsibly.
reporting a study from
offer permanent, full-time, fixed jobs It must provide effective and agile
the TUC and academics
for life, we want to ensure that our solutions for the repositioning of
at the University of
employees are equipped with the skills employees impacted by transformation
Hertfordshire, July 2019.
required to protect their livelihoods, and must increase redundant workers’
whether within or outside Unilever. employability while supporting their
We’re engaging with other businesses, transition to new employment.
14 UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020We have developed our guidelines the ground. In September 2020 we
for our approach to responsible How do we support signed a Statement relating to the
automation, based on four core EU framework on mandatory human
principles. We’re also developing digital
human rights due rights and environmental due diligence,
ways for qualitative and quantitative diligence? supporting legislation that will require
feedback from workers on their progress businesses to address their actual and
in finding replacement jobs. potential human rights impacts and,
where legally permissible, scale up
Our work with unions on responsible
collaboration between brands, suppliers
automation is described on page 31.
and other stakeholders to improve
the sustainability of supply chains. We
The challenges ahead also gave our public support to this in
relation to cocoa and as members of
We know that we need to improve our AIM-Progress and B4IG, we also support
visibility of conditions for workers in our their contribution to this debate.
supply chain, especially as the economic The trend
impacts of COVID-19 could create scope
Under the UN Guiding Principles on
The challenges ahead
for weakening rights in communities
facing high unemployment. We also Business and Human Rights companies
There remain significant challenges in
know that the trends towards contract have a responsibility to undertake
operating in countries where national
labour and automation are likely to human rights due diligence. Worldwide,
law is either non-existent in certain
accelerate, and that our Framework and particularly in Europe, there is a
areas, or deviates from internationally
for the Future of Work must continually growing movement for mandatory due
recognised human rights standards. It is
adapt to stay ahead of them. This diligence – that is, legal requirements for
also vital that mandatory human rights
underlines the importance of remaining companies to show that they are taking
due diligence results in processes that
open to transparent communication action to address human rights risks in
are fully embedded in governance and
with our employees, unions, the their value chains.
company culture, ultimately leading to
community and other rights-holders
better outcomes for people.
and stakeholders.
Our action
We support due diligence frameworks
that address the root causes of
human rights violations, lead to
real shifts in companies’ practices
and bring about positive change on
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 15Our action The challenges ahead
How do we improve There is a consistent challenge for
We are building on the ways we hear
our measurement directly from people on the ground who
business in this area: the impact on
and reporting so are impacted by our business. Some of
the individual rights-holder is difficult
to measure and very personal. Robust
we can see, and the ways we do this are described on
social impact metrics will help better
pages 75 and 77. Social dialogue with
share, our impact workers’ representatives is also vital, and
capture complexities, enabling clearer
measurement of effectiveness as we
on people’s lives? we describe our engagement with trade
continue to work on strengthening on
unions in Freedom of association, on
the ground verification. This includes
pages 30–32.
a greater role for technology to bring
We align our reporting with the United transparency, as well as continuing
Nations Guiding Principles Reporting expansion of community-based
Framework, producing a first human monitoring engagement, including
The trend rights report in 2015, a progress report in ‘ground-truthing’.
2017 and a series of updates on progress
Stakeholders focus on transparency, each year. Following our engagement The new Unilever Compass
quantitative reporting and impact in the consultation process for auditing
Building on the progress we made and
measurement. They, like us, want to see implementation of the UNGPs, our
the lessons we learnt throughout the
evidence of progress on the ground in progress is reviewed and validated
ten years of the USLP, the Compass
the form of improved working conditions (not verified) by our sustainable finance
is our fully integrated corporate
and better lives in our value chain. Social team and independently assured
strategy, which includes actions and
impact, however, remains difficult to (not audited). Details of our Basis of
commitments designed to help build a
measure and report in meaningful ways. Preparation can be found here. From
fairer, more inclusive world. Giving focus
2021 we will continue with these
to the Compass will be 15 multi-year
principles as we integrate our human
priorities that cover the full spectrum of
rights reporting into the business’s core
our business and wider ecosystem, with
reporting framework through the Annual
a new set of industry-leading, company-
Report and the new Planet & Society hub
wide social and environmental
on Unilever’s global website. Our aim is
commitments. These commitments will
to make our reporting more interactive,
tackle the key challenges of our time
with regular updates, and to incorporate
including human rights, social inclusion
more quantitative reporting and impact
and fair value distribution. We describe
measurement.
our social ambitions on page 11.
16 UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020Our strategy
Collaborative action
The Consumer World Economic AIM–Progress Leadership Group Business for
Goods Forum Forum (WEF) RESPONSIBLE
for Responsible Inclusive Growth
(CGF) HUMAN RIGHTS; EQUITY SOURCING Recruitment (B4IG)
AND SOCIAL JUSTICE; (LGRR) INCLUSIVE
HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUTURE OF WORK;
GROWTH
SUSTAINABLE SUPPLY TRANSPARENCY AND RESPONSIBLE
CHAINS ANTI-CORRUPTION RECRUITMENT
For more details see Appendix V.
Taking action to achieve Steering Group, providing strategic Supply Chain Initiative (SSCI), focused
direction to the organisation. on providing clear guidance to buyers
systems change
and suppliers in the consumer goods
Priority areas include:
industry on third-party auditing and
The lasting, systemic changes needed
– Human rights due diligence certification schemes that cover
to make a positive difference to millions
sustainability requirements and apply
of people can only come about through – Eradication of forced labour and
relevant governance and verification.
collaborative action at scale. That’s promotion of responsible recruitment
why we work with a wide range of
– Understanding the impact of climate Business for Inclusive Growth (B4IG)
stakeholders.
change on human rights
We are members of the working
In addition to our global partnerships,
– Working towards a living wage in groups on Building an inclusive
our brands have many local
supply chains recovery; Inclusive sourcing and
partnerships.
Impact measurement.
– Developing worker voice solutions
Institute for Human Rights and and grievance mechanisms
Business Working with partners to
– Measuring and reporting outcomes
We have worked with the Institute for and impact for people in member achieve social impact
Human Rights and Business since 2014, supply chains
including as a founding member of Our strategy involves working
the Leadership Group for Responsible The Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) with multiple partners to achieve
Recruitment, see Appendix V. positive social impact, implement
We are members of CGF and participate programmes on the ground, advocate
actively in its committees including the for policy changes and create powerful
AIM-Progress
Human Rights Coalition – Working to campaigns to raise awareness and drive
We are members of the Human Rights End Forced Labour and the Sustainable consumer engagement.
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 17Public–private partnerships for – India: Supporting Dharma Life to Spaces. Launched in 2018, this aims
change promote ‘Clean and Connected Homes’ to increase the safety of women in
and scale awareness and behaviour agricultural value chains, as we describe
We see public–private partnerships
change among rural low-income on page 34. We were also a founding
as a core part of our approach. In
households on good health, hygiene, member of the UN Women-convened
2015, for example, Unilever and the
water and sanitation habits, and Unstereotype Alliance and are proud
UK government’s Department for
provide access to relevant products. to be a vice chair today. Launched in
International Development (DFID, now
2017, the Alliance aims to eradicate
UK Aid*) founded TRANSFORM, an – India: Working with Frontier Markets’
stereotypes and adverse social norms
innovation programme which supports network of 300 women entrepreneurs
from the advertising industry. We
social entrepreneurs to bring private to distribute Pureit water filters in rural
describe our work to combat gender-
sector creativity and commercial Rajasthan for the first time.
based violence in Harassment.
approaches to solve persistent global
– Bangladesh: Supporting Drinkwell
development challenges. By aiming to
to scale its micro-franchise model of Oxfam
enable millions of people in sub-Saharan
community water kiosks to sell clean
Africa and South Asia to gain access to We have worked with Oxfam on a range
drinking water, aiming to impact 100
products and services that have been of projects and relating to workers
million lives globally by 2030.
shown to improve health, livelihoods, the and farmers in our supply chain. These
environment or well-being, it addresses – Rwanda: Improving the business include a poverty footprint study in
a wide range of the UN Sustainable model of Pit Vidura which promotes Indonesia in 2004; a joint project on
Development Goals (SDGs). sanitation and health for low-income sustainable agriculture including
communities by offering safe and through the Enhancing Livelihoods
In 2018 TRANSFORM scaled up and
affordable pit latrine emptying services Fund; a ground-breaking report looking
quadrupled the value of the programme
in dense informal settlements. into labour rights in our supply chain in
to £40 million, and by 2020 TRANSFORM
Vietnam in 2013 with a follow-up report
had supported over 50 projects in
Shift in 2016; and extensive work around
thirteen countries – including these
women’s rights, including making the
crucial projects with innovative social Shift, the leading centre of expertise
case for businesses to address unpaid
entreprises to enhance access to water on the UN Guiding Principles, has acted
care work. Oxfam continues to be a key
and sanitation in Africa and Asia. as a trusted adviser to Unilever on the
partner and help us bring the voices of
UN Guiding Principles on Business and
– Kenya: working with the Malindi Water workers to our discussions.
Human Rights and on overall human
and Sewage Company (MAWASCO)
rights issues for many years. Shift has
to showcase innovative models for WEF
facilitated multiple workshops and
scaling up sanitation services.
helped to develop a guide to integrate We sit on the WEF Global Future Councils
– Zambia: working with Southern Water human rights into our M&A processes. on Human Rights; Equity and Social
and Sanitation Company Limited on Justice; Future of Work; Transparency
Most recently, they helped create
waste management models. and Anti-corruption. We have worked
our Business & Human Rights Training
with the WEF to incorporate human
– Nigeria: 16 Sunlight Water Centres in 2019.
rights considerations into mainstream
providing clean water through
discussions, including those of other
solar-powered boreholes in remote Working with UN Women to increase
WEF councils.
communities. women’s safety and advance equality
We have worked on a range of initiatives
While we have seen significant progress
*T
his project was funded with UK aid from the with UN Women, including A Global
UK government, however the views expressed through these collaborations, we
do not necessarily reflect the UK government’s Women’s Safety Framework in Rural
recognise that they do not provide
official policies.
18 UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020Some of our partners “Unilever is one of the
(Click on logo for link) most engaged
companies on human
rights, living wages and
gender equality that
I have worked with in
my time at Oxfam.”
UNICEF Save the Children GAIN
Rachel Wilshaw
Workers’ Rights Senior Manager,
Oxfam
GAVI IDH UN Women
“Poverty eradication
and universal human
rights lie at the core
of the Sustainable
Development Goals.
International Center for WEConnect International CARE International Businesses like Unilever
Research on Women
must leverage their
scale and influence to
improve society and
the environment. If a
critical mass joins the
bop inc UNHCR SDG movement and we
all work together to
drive transformational
change, it will create
the solution to every issue. There can of partnership and engagement, we
an unstoppable force
be challenges in working in coalitions are committed to work in collaboration
in terms of speed, agreement on with multiple stakeholders, and we will for good.”
overall vision and ambition, and the continue to seek innovative approaches
implementation of measures on the to achieve shared goals. Rebecca Marmot
ground. Competing organisations Chief Sustainability Officer,
may also take individual approaches Unilever
rather than coming together on issues.
Nonetheless, we believe in the impact
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 19Our salient human
rights issues
What are salient human In the lead up to our first human rights On the following pages we look back
report in 2015, we worked with a range at highlights of our recent work to
rights issues?
of expert external stakeholders and address our salient human rights issues,
internal leaders to identify where, and the challenges we’ve faced and the
The UN Guiding Principles (UNGPs)
how, our business activities could result opportunities we see for the future. They
define them as the human rights that
in salient human rights risks. In our 2015 are a snapshot of a far wider range of
are at risk of the most severe negative
Report we gave an introduction to each activities around the world. For more
impacts through a company’s activities
issue and how we were responding to information on the progress we have
or business relationships.
it. In our 2017 Report, we gave progress made on our salient issues, please go to
Unilever’s salient issues are: highlights of our work and outcomes, our Salient Issues timeline – Appendix II.
and linked them to the SDGs. We have Our Supplier Audit Results 2019 can be
– those identified and prioritised in
reported annually on our progress on found here.
alignment with the UNGP process.
our global website.
They are not:
As part of our new Compass ambition,
– a
n exhaustive list of all issues that we have conducted a review of the
exist across our business. We continue global salient issues and conducted
to address all human rights issues. regional stakeholder consultations
to map out relevance and impact
at the regional level. As a result,
comprehensive multi-year action
plans are in place.
20 UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020Fair
Discrimination wages
Working Forced
hours labour
Our salient
human rights
issues
Land
Freedom of
rights
association
Health &
safety Harassment
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 21Our salient issues
Discrimination
RESPONSIBLE SOURCING Discrimination holds
POLICY: people back and has
#3 All workers are serious consequences for
treated equally and people’s life-chances. As
with respect and dignity the events of 2020 have
shown, systemic injustice
#10 All workers have continues to impact
access to fair people’s rights around
procedures and the world.
remedies
An inclusive world, with no the fundamental dignity and worth of including through our commitments to
individuals from all identities, spend €2 billion annually with diverse
discrimination
backgrounds and walks of life, while suppliers, and increase the number of
working to eliminate the institutional our advertisements that include people
Eradicating discrimination and
and unconscious barriers that limit from diverse groups, by 2025.
advancing diversity are vital to the
employees’ ability to achieve their full
communities where we operate, to our To achieve this, we understand that we
potential. We are committed to removing
wider ambition to challenge outdated must drive systemic change through
barriers and increasing inclusivity for
cultural norms throughout our value our practices, policies and behaviours
underrepresented groups. We have
chain – and to contributing to a more to ensure that our culture promotes
identified four Strategic Identity Groups
prosperous and just society. psychological safety and a deep sense
(Gender, Race and Ethnicity, Persons
of belonging for employees across
with Disabilities and members of
all of our operating companies and
Removing barriers and the LGBTQI+ communities) which will
functions. It requires accountability
challenging harmful norms require global focus in order to address
from our most senior leaders in the
challenges of underrepresentation at
organisation, who can set the tone and
We’re committed to eliminating all levels of our organisation, career
lead by example with their actions, as
discrimination of all kinds, including by progression, perception of inclusion
well as the commitment of all managers
gender, and to building a culture that and levels of voluntary attrition. Our
and employees to proactively work
empowers people in our business and overall aim is to be a beacon of equity,
towards dismantling the barriers faced
beyond. Our ambition is to establish inclusion and diversity. That ambition
by underrepresented identity groups.
equitable workplaces that recognise extends beyond our own business,
22 UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020In 2014 we launched the Opportunities
Approximate number of workers for Women pillar of the Unilever
in our extended supply chain Sustainable Living Plan, based on the
potentially impacted:
tripod of rights, skills and opportunities
77,000
and underpinned by our belief that
women’s empowerment is the single
greatest enabler of human development
and economic growth.
Top three countries where
issues are found: Our work builds on the progress we’ve
made through our USLP, in which
India
challenging harmful stereotypes and
Brazil
other forms of discrimination have
Indonesia
been key elements in our work to
create fairness in the workplace and
opportunities for women – work informed
by our 2017 report, ‘Opportunities for
Women: Challenging harmful social
norms and gender stereotypes to unlock
women’s potential’. In 2020, in the US,
When a non-compliance is found we estimate the we committed more than $7 million to
possible number of people impacted. See Appendix
III for details. Our suppliers put remediation plans organisations working towards social
in place for every non-compliance. Data source: justice and racial equity. In support Brands in action
USQS Global Responsible Sourcing Report NC Audit
data 2016-YTD 2020 audits.
of our aim to be the No.1 employer of
people with disabilities, we are building In 2019, Dove partnered with UNICEF
a culture where there is no stigma in with a a shared vision/goal to educate
sharing a disability, where employees 10 million more young people by 2022
can have open and honest conversations on self-esteem and body confidence to
“The burden to end regarding their abilities, and where our help them reach their full potential. Dove
institutionalised racism workplaces, systems, and processes also created Project #ShowUs, an image
cannot fall only on Black do not present obstacles. In 2018 we library created by women, female-
signed the UN Standards of Conduct identifying and non-binary individuals.
and African American
for Business: Tackling Discrimination
communities. We must against Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans, &
In 2018, Ben & Jerry’s partnered with
Milość Nie Wyklucza (Love Does Not
do more both within Intersex People. In 2020, we also used
Exclude Association) and Fundacja
and outside the Unilever external guidance including from ILGA,
Wolontariat Rowności to install a
Stonewall and Open for Business to
ecosystem to use our colourful water unbreakable rainbow
zone all the markets we operate in
economic power for good depending on four factors: same sex
light projection just in time for Warsaw’s
Pride parade.
and help tackle the root acts being legal; protection against
causes of social injustice.” hate crime; employment protection; and In 2019, Hindustan Unilever joined in
legality of same-sex marriages and/or the country’s first-ever Pride campaign
civil unions. This informs how we engage to create awareness and support
Fabian Garcia on LGBTQI+ issues in each of our markets. colleagues who identify as being part
President, Unilever North America of the LGBTQI+ community.
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 23Equal pay for equal work
Our future direction
We have a longstanding commitment to
equal pay for equal work, which is one of The events of 2020 have shown that the journey towards
the five principles of our Framework for social justice and gender equality is far from over. At
Fair Compensation. the same time, movements such as Black Lives Matter
demonstrate the power and commitment of citizens around
If our analysis indicates any average the world in demanding equity and justice.
pay differences between genders at
a country or grade level (a ‘gender We understand that discrimination is an intricate system
pay gap’), we support and identify resulting in the exclusion of people of colour from positions
opportunities to address gaps through of power, access to services, global decision makers,
our diversity and inclusion initiatives. etc. Aligned with our expressed values and standards
of leadership we believe that it is our responsibility to
We also cascade the principles of our understand and eliminate discrimination based on race and
Framework to our suppliers through ethnicity in our company and in those organisations that
our Responsible Sourcing Policy, which partner with us. Given the social relevance of the issues
requires that fair wages are paid. of racism and institutionalised discrimination, Racial and
We have identified temporary workers Ethnic Equity has been established as one of four Strategic
as an area of focus both in our own Identity Groups in our Global Equity, Inclusion and Diversity
operations and in our extended supply (EI&D) strategy and we have developed a strategic
chain. In 2018 we rolled out our internal framework to ensure visible, measurable, sustainable
policy and process for the Sustainable actions to impact representation, employee experience and
Employment of Temporary Workers, career progression of Black and Brown Talent.
which sets out 10 Golden Standards that The job to address women’s inequality and lack of
include fair and equal treatment, gender opportunity in some areas is still not done. For example
equality, diversity and freedom of we have made good progress in addressing the legacy of
association. By linking this to extensive underrepresentation of women in leadership positions
work to collect global granular data in our Supply Chain function, but we still have work to
relating to the employment of temporary do. Another challenge we face as a global business is
workers in our factories, we’ve gained implementing global positions on issues such as LGBTIQ+
greater insight and understanding of rights at the local level, where we need to remain true to
how temporary workers are employed. our beliefs while being sensitive to the local situation.
In 2019, we enhanced the assessment Working with expert organisations, sharing experiences
process for labour agencies providing and learning from others has helped us create clear plans
in-sourced temporary workers, checking in this area.
that they are compliant with our RSP
and using a specifically designed The casualisation of employment and unequal working
Self-Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ) conditions continue to be at the heart of many labour
and subsequent risk-rating for labour issues in global supply chains. As we build on our internal
agencies, followed by independent policy on the Sustainable Employment of Temporary
on-site assessments. In 2020, because Workers, a focus going forward will be ensuring
of COVID-19, these assessments were comparable terms and conditions for temporary workers
done remotely. in our extended supply chain.
24 UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020Our salient issues
Fair wages
RESPONSIBLE Fair wages are a crucial
SOURCING POLICY: element of raising living
#6 All workers are standards and creating a
paid fair wages fairer, more inclusive world.
They also benefit the
broader economy by
stimulating consumer
spending, creating a virtuous
economic growth cycle.
Our living wage vision most important, and most challenging country business to report its status
contributions our company can make against the standards of our Framework
Fair wages are the bedrock of a truly to building a fairer and more inclusive each year, and where appropriate,
responsible and sustainable business – world. To achieve this vision, we will country reports must include a
and a vital gateway to more equitable build on the work we’ve already done remediation plan to rectify any issues
societies. to pay all our employees a living wage, of concern.
everywhere in the world – and work with
Our ambition is to improve living
others to change the global systems
standards for low-paid workers Fair wages, for decent living
that currently hold people’s incomes
worldwide, allowing people to
and opportunities back. standards
participate more fully in their
communities and helping them Central to our Framework is the principle
break the cycle of poverty. Alongside Our Framework for of a ‘living wage’ – that is “remuneration
programmes aimed at empowering Fair Compensation received for a standard workweek by a
millions of small and medium worker in a particular place sufficient to
enterprises in our value chain for In 2014 we created a Framework for afford a decent standard of living for the
growth, we’ve committed to ensuring Fair Compensation, which included our worker and her or his family. Elements
that everyone who directly provides commitment to be a living wage of a decent standard of living include
goods and services to Unilever earns employer. This outlines how we should food, water, housing, education, health
at least a living wage or income by deliver fair compensation by listing a care, transportation, clothing, and other
2030. We believe it is one of the biggest, number of standards. We require each essential needs including provision
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 25for unexpected events.” (Global Living done this in the UAE, Vietnam, Rwanda
Wage Coalition) and India, where we are working with the
“We will work with our
FWN across 17 states.
partners to raise
standards so that their
Expanding our vision across
employees are paid a NETWORK
our value chain
living wage and are not
subject to forced, We have continued our work with To make our living wage and living
the independent Fair Wage Network
compulsory, trafficked income ambition a reality, we’ve put
(FWN) and use their global living an action plan in place that builds on
or child labour.” wage database to monitor our own the progress we’ve made through our
operations. Our initial assessment, in RSP. We’re looking at where the gaps
From our Code of Business 2015, identified 37 countries with living between legal minimum wages and
Principles, updated 2020 wage concerns, amounting to just under living wages are the greatest, where
12,000 of our direct employees receiving the social safety net for workers is
less than a living wage. These concerns weakest, and where we can make the
have now been addressed. most impact, based on our presence
and scale in local markets. We will
Building on our work with focus on the most vulnerable workers
in manufacturing and agriculture,
suppliers
and we will work with our suppliers,
other businesses, governments and
The payment of either the legal
civil society – through our purchasing
minimum wage or the prevailing industry
Approximate number of workers practices, collaboration and advocacy
in our extended supply chain standard (whichever is higher) has
– to create systemic change and the
potentially impacted: always been a mandatory requirement
260,000
global adoption of living wage practices.
of our Responsible Sourcing Policy. Over
the years we’ve worked with suppliers
Spotlight on Malawi
to ensure this requirement is met – but
it is not always straightforward. In some Malawi Tea 2020 was a multi-
Top three countries where
countries, including those under the stakeholder partnership that aimed
issues are found:
China Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), there to improve the competitiveness and
India
are no legal minimum wages mandated sustainability of the Malawian industry
by the government, so there is no legal so that workers earn a living wage and
Indonesia framework. This meant we needed to small-scale farmers earn a living income.
identify a substitute for the legal At the end of the 5 year programme,
minimum wage as an initial wage floor a third of the living wage gap has
or starting level. been closed for 50,000 tea workers.
Highlighting progress but also on-going
We are working with the FWN to achieve
challenges. Learnings from the Malawi
this and have conducted a study to
2020 programme partnership included
identify the gap between the lowest
When a non-compliance is found we estimate the the importance of agreement on living
possible number of people impacted. See Appendix wage paid by our suppliers and the
wage methodologies, the important
V for details. Our suppliers put remediation plans value we have identified. The FWN carry
in place for every non-compliance. Data source: link between improved product quality
USQS Global Responsible Sourcing Report NC
out interviews with workers to better
and wages, and, critically, verification
Audit data 2016-YTD 2020 audits. understand their expenditure and have
from producers that they benefitted from
26 UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020Our future direction
Rolling out our internal Framework for Fair Compensation of the concept, by encouraging industry and stakeholder
across the full breadth and diversity of our global collaboration, particularly around aligned methodologies
operations has underlined the importance of strong and benchmarks, and by working towards transparent and
governance and of building internal understanding of widely available wage data. We see the inclusion of living
which elements contribute to a living wage. wage requirements in certification schemes as a positive
move, but one that needs further development.
We’ve found it has been critical to have a clear framework,
policy and process in place, which we continued to review We are clear that paying a living wage is not only the right
and strengthen. Few companies have attempted an thing to do but also makes business sense. We need to
ambition on this scale, and it required a rapid learning continue to drive systemic solutions, including addressing
process, including when it came to regional differences purchasing practices and fair pricing models, while
where gaps with the living wage were largest. Progress in creating an enabling environment for fair wages, including
some areas was slower than we wanted, for example in our through government advocacy to raise wages above
sales-force teams where pay structures were different. poverty level.
We’ve laid important foundations for our new living wage
commitment, by building awareness and understanding
improved quality. Obtaining feedback
from workers is an area that needs to
“Malawi 2020 is a good
be strengthened. Engagement with
trade unions and support for collective example of Unilever’s new
bargaining was a vital element of this vision for procurement –
work as was the development of an a procurement with
innovative sustainable procurement
purpose – driving impact
model. Another concern was potential
unintended consequences of focusing on every day, everywhere, for
wage increases in one country due to its everyone. It is critical that
effect on sourcing from other countries. additional value is passed
A further consequence of increased
onto the workers, and we
wages in Malawi was that it pushed
workers into a higher tax band. continue to work with our
suppliers to include this in
These issues underline the importance
of a multi-stakeholder approach our contracts with them.”
– including producers, traders,
buyers, retailers, trade unions,
NGOs,development partners and John Mutua
governments – when working to increase Head of Tea Procurement, Africa
wage standards sustainably in global
supply chains.
See Appendix IV for more information.
UNILEVER HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2020 27You can also read
