Worker Enforceable Supplier Codes of Conduct as a Tool for Access to Justice in Global Supply Chains

January 2021

As a result of criticism and public pressure, many companies that source goods internationally now use supplier codes of conduct and/or sustainability clauses in their supply chain contracts. But contracts that explicitly provide legally-enforceable rights to workers are virtually nonexistent in global supply chains.

This article examines whether including language in supplier contracts that create legal rights for workers to enforce codes of conduct would improve labor rights performance. It looks at what such language might look like and how it would operate, and provides a case study, where 14 US companies agreed to include such language in their supply chain contracts. 

The article is published in the first edition of the Global Labour Rights Reporter, a new journal put out by the International Lawyers Assisting Workers Network.