Multinational enterprises
Through their globalized production systems, their subsidiaries and extended value chains, multinational enterprises (MNEs) represent an important share of the private sector in many developing and industrialised economies. With their extensive reach, investment decisions and business relationships, MNEs have a significant potential to contribute to the realization of decent work. The contribution of the private sector to the Sustainable development goals is recognized in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda for financing development, as well as the ILO Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization.
To guide and encourage the positive contribution which MNEs can make to socio-economic development and minimize the negative impacts of their operations, the ILO promotes the Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy (MNE Declaration). The MNE Declaration provides clear and comprehensive guidance on and to multinational (and national) enterprises on how they can contribute to decent work by observing in their policies and practices recommendations in the areas of employment, training, conditions of work and life, industrial relations, as well as by observing general principles.
Key resources
MNE Declaration
ILO Helpdesk for Business on International Labour Standards
Company-union dialogue
MNE Declaration and trade and investment
MNE Declaration in International Framework Agreements
ILO/IOE self-assessment tool for enterprises based on the MNE Declaration
News and articles
The MNE Declaration and the Business and Human Rights agenda
The ILO Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy is part of the Sustainable Transformation Diploma
Highlighted publications
The ILO MNE Declaration: What’s in it for Workers?
Assessing the Impact of FDI on Decent Work - Exploring KPIs for Foreign Direct Investment Impact Assessment
The elimination of child labour and its root causes – the guidance offered by the ILO MNE Declaration
Publications
ILO brief
Promoting gender equality through responsible business conduct: the role of governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations
A compilation of good corporate practices
Businesses leading the way on disability inclusion
Engaging multinational enterprises on more and better jobs
Highlighted training resources
E-learning: Business and Decent Work
International Labour Standards and Responsible Business Conduct the labour dimension of human rights due diligence
Effective investment facilitation and sustainable development
Contact
For more information, contact the ILO's Multinational Enterprises and Responsible Business Conduct Unit at multi@ilo.org.
Related topics
Supply chains
Sustainable enterprises
Responsible business conduct