Comment on the Swiss vote on the Responsible Business Initiative
29. November 2020
By Thomas Pletscher, Secretary General, ICC Switzerland
Personal appreciation of timing and effect
Today and after a harsh and emotional campaign on both sides, Switzerland voted on a popular initiative to amend the Constitution in order to strengthen responsible business conduct (RBI) in the field of human rights and environmental standards. The proposal was rejected in a tight vote (50.7% yes by people) and with a clear majority of the Cantons being against. Any amendment of the Constitution has to be approved by the people as well as the Cantons.
The RBI would had requested strict due dilligence along the whole supply chain and a direct liability in Switzerland for mother companies for damages caused by themselves as well as subsidiaries and economically dependent suppliers abroad. Concrete conditions an details would have been defined in an implentation law to be elaborated after a positive vote. This would have taken some more years due to the legislative process.
The Parliament has already approved a counter proposal (CP). This CP obliges Companies to strict due diligence in relation to human rights, environmental standards and anti-coruption. Special respect has to be given to raw material and child labor. The CP can be compared with the laws in France, Netherlands or United Kingdom as well with proposed rules in the EU. Liability rules are not changed. Some claims are already possible under existing law (but have never been tested), notably when «headquarters are directly involved in violations». Court pactice will show whether due dilligence and reporting obligations will change the perception of «being directly involved».