2017 Results
The 2017 Corporate Human Rights Benchmark assesses 98 of the largest publicly traded companies in the world on 100 human rights indicators. The results reveal a small group of leaders pulling ahead of the rest.
OVERALL SCORES
No. of Companies (Total: 98)
Score range (%)
Key Findings Report
A detailed briefing on the 2017 results. Find the highest and lowest scoring companies in each industry by measurement theme, analysis of trends, and emerging practice.
Industry Scores
The companies from industries - Agricultural Products, Apparel, and Extractives - were chosen for the first Benchmark on the basis of their size (market capitalisation) and revenues. The charts below show the number of companies in each band per industry.
Agricultural Products
Score range (%)
No. of Companies
Apparel
Score range (%)
No. of Companies
Extractives
Score range (%)
No. of Companies
Banding Table
There is a cluster of companies taking a leadership position and driving forward corporate human rights performance. However, there are still plenty of challenges ahead. For example, only three companies score more than 60% and the average score is 28.7%.
| BAND RANGE | COMPANY | INDUSTRY |
60-69% | BHP Billiton | Extractives |
|---|---|---|
| Marks & Spencer Group | Agricultural Products / Apparel | |
| Rio Tinto | Extractives | |
50-59% | Nestle | Agricultural Products |
| Adidas | Apparel | |
| Unilever | Agricultural Products | |
40-49% | Total | Extractives |
| Hennes & Mauritz | Apparel | |
| Kellogg | Agricultural Products | |
| Anglo American | Extractives | |
| Gap | Apparel | |
| Freeport-McMoRan | Extractives | |
| BP | Extractives | |
| Tesco | Agricultural Products / Apparel | |
| ConocoPhillips | Extractives | |
| Chevron Corporation | Extractives | |
| The Coca-Cola Company | Agricultural Products | |
| Nike | Apparel | |
30-39% | Statoil | Extractives |
| Pernod-Ricard | Agricultural Products | |
| Royal Dutch Shell | Extractives | |
| General Mills | Agricultural Products | |
| VF | Apparel | |
| Inditex | Apparel | |
| Sasol | Extractives | |
| Hanesbrands | Apparel | |
| Vale | Extractives | |
| Ecopetrol | Extractives | |
| Glencore | Extractives | |
| Heineken NV | Agricultural Products | |
| Exxon Mobil | Extractives | |
| Suncor Energy | Extractives | |
| Diageo | Agricultural Products | |
| The Hershey Company | Agricultural Products | |
| Occidental Petroleum | Extractives | |
| Target | Agricultural Products / Apparel | |
20-29% | Danone | Agricultural Products |
| PTT | Extractives | |
| Devon Energy | Extractives | |
| Kering | Apparel | |
| Archer Daniels Midland | Agricultural Products | |
| Goldcorp | Extractives | |
| BRF | Agricultural Products | |
| Associated British Foods | Agricultural Products / Apparel | |
| Anheuser-Busch InBev | Agricultural Products | |
| Sysco | Agricultural Products | |
| TJX Companies | Apparel | |
| L Brands | Apparel | |
| Christian Dior | Apparel | |
| Canadian Natural Resources | Extractives | |
| PetroChina | Extractives | |
| Compass Group | Agricultural Products | |
| Norilsk Nickel | Extractives | |
| Starbucks | Agricultural Products | |
| Marathon Petroleum | Extractives | |
| Woolworths | Agricultural Products | |
| Nordstrom | Apparel | |
| Anadarko Petroleum | Extractives | |
| Phillips 66 | Extractives | |
| Mondelez International | Agricultural Products | |
| PepsiCo | Agricultural Products | |
| Coach | Apparel | |
| Lukoil | Extractives | |
| Kroger | Agricultural Products | |
| Shoprite | Agricultural Products | |
| Next | Apparel | |
| Surgutneftegas | Extractives | |
| Alimentation Couche-tard | Agricultural Products | |
| Aeon Company | Agricultural Products / Apparel | |
| Gazprom | Extractives | |
| EOG Resources | Extractives | |
| Valero Energy | Extractives | |
| Carrefour | Agricultural Products | |
| Repsol | Extractives | |
| Prada | Apparel | |
| Falabella | Agricultural Products / Apparel | |
| CNOOC | Extractives | |
| Eni | Extractives | |
| Rosneft Oil | Extractives | |
| China Shenhua Energy | Extractives | |
| Hermes International | Apparel | |
| Heilan Home | Apparel | |
| Kraft Heinz | Agricultural Products | |
| Kweichow Moutai | Agricultural Products | |
10-19% | Petrobras | Extractives |
| Under Armour | Apparel | |
| Fast Retailing | Apparel | |
| Wal-mart Stores | Agricultural Products / Apparel | |
| McDonald's | Agricultural Products | |
0-9% | Coal India | Extractives |
| China Petroleum & Chemical | Extractives | |
| Ross Stores | Apparel | |
| Kohl's | Apparel | |
| Oil & Natural Gas Corporation | Extractives | |
| Yum! Brands | Agricultural Products | |
| Grupo Mexico | Extractives | |
| Macy's | Apparel | |
| Costco Wholesale | Agricultural Products / Apparel |
Measurement Theme Scores
Companies were assessed across 6 measurement themes which have different weightings. On the whole, companies perform better on policy commitments and governance. Performance drops off when it comes to acting on those risks, tracking responses and remediating harms. In the bars below, darker colour blocks indicate the average score achieved.
Governance & Policy Commitments
- Highest Score :
- 9.3 / 10
- Average score :
- 2.1 / 10
This Measurement Theme focuses on a company’s human rights related policy commitments and how they are governed. It includes two related sub-themes: Policy Commitments and Board Level Accountability.
Embedding Respect & Human Rights Due Diligence
- Highest score :
- 18.2 / 25
- Average score :
- 4.0 / 25
This Measurement Theme assesses the extent of a company’s systems and processes established to implement the company’s policy commitments in practice. It includes two related sub-themes: Embedding Respect and Human Rights Due Diligence.
Remedies & Grievance Mechanisms
- Highest score :
- 12.5 / 15
- Average score :
- 2.1 / 15
This Measurement Theme focuses on the extent to which a Company provides remedy in addressing actual adverse impacts on human rights. It covers a Company’s approach to providing or cooperating in remediation when human rights harms – actual human rights impacts – have occurred.
Performance: Company Human Rights Practices
- Highest score :
- 13.8 / 20
- Average score :
- 2.8 / 20
This Measurement Theme focuses on selected human rights related practices specific to each industry. The indicators seek to assess the actual practices occurring within companies to implement key enabling factors and business processes, and to prevent specific impacts on human rights.
Performance: Responses to Serious Allegations
- Total number of allegations :
- 62
- Companies with allegations :
- 41
This Measurement Theme focuses on responses to serious allegations of negative impacts a Company may be alleged or reported to be involved in by an external source. Indicators in this Measurement Theme seek to assess a Company’s response to an allegation that an impact has occurred, and do not seek to assess the allegation itself.
Transparency
- Highest score :
- 7.8 / 10
- Average score :
- 3.0 / 10
This Measurement Theme seeks to recognise companies that disclose relevant information on human rights, regardless of whether the disclosed information is sufficient to meet a Score 1 or 2 in a CHRB indicator. The rationale of this Measurement Theme is to encourage even poor performing companies to become more transparent as a first step towards respect for human rights.