BELGIUM Law and Practice Contributed by: Chris Engels and Julie Devos, Claeys & Engels
• supply chain transparency – companies are mapping and monitoring their supply chains, especially to ensure that suppliers and contractors uphold labour rights, avoid child labour or forced labour, and comply with local environmental standards; • stakeholder engagement – engaging with local communities, workers, and NGOs to understand the actual and potential human rights impacts of business activities; and • internal policies and structures – many com - panies create specific human rights policies and appoint dedicated human rights offic - ers or teams to ensure that human rights due diligence is implemented throughout the organisation. Leading Belgian companies are also embedding human rights into their corporate governance structures. This means: • board-level responsibility – the Board of Directors or senior management oversees the company’s human rights strategy and ensures it aligns with (inter)national norms and legal obligations. In many cases, this responsibility is explicitly outlined in the com - pany’s corporate governance framework; and • human rights committees – larger Belgian firms may set up dedicated human rights or sustainability committees at the board level to ensure accountability, particularly for human rights risks in operations or supply chains. In compliance with relevant legal requirements, Belgian companies, particularly large ones, are publishing annual sustainability or CSR reports that disclose their efforts in addressing human rights issues, environmental impacts, and gov - ernance practices.
To ensure effective human rights practices, Bel - gian companies often provide training programs for employees at all levels of the organisation, especially those involved in procurement, human resources, and supply chain management. Train - ing programs help employees recognise and address human rights risks such as discrimina - tion, harassment, and forced labour. The training may also include guidance on implementing due diligence and reporting potential human rights violations. Many Belgian companies adopt robust anti-cor - ruption policies as part of their corporate sus - tainability and human rights frameworks. These policies are typically embedded within broader corporate governance structures that empha - sise transparency, ethical business conduct, and respect for fundamental rights. In line with both EU directives and Belgian legal requirements – such as the transposition of the EU Whistle - blower Directive – companies are increasingly implementing secure and confidential reporting mechanisms. These allow employees and exter - nal stakeholders to report suspected corruption or human rights violations without fear of retali - ation, thereby reinforcing internal accountability and legal compliance. In this respect, the EU Whistleblower Directive was transposed into Belgian law by the Act of 28 November 2022 for the protection of reporters from breaches of Union or national law within private legal entities. This legislation provides robust protection for individuals who report vio - lations, including those related to human rights, environmental protection, and corporate gov - ernance. Under Belgian law, companies with 50 or more employees are required to establish secure and accessible internal reporting chan - nels. These channels must guarantee the con - fidentiality of the whistle-blower’s identity and
28
CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook