ISLAMABAD, Nov 28 (APP):The COVID-19 pandemic has provided businesses with an opportunity to embed respect for human rights into their values, play an instrumental role in enhancing economic and social resilience to future crises, and support sustainable development.
According to recent study conducted by Ministry of Human Rights (MoHR) in partnership with UNDP, to build back from the epidemic sustainably, businesses should assess the impacts of COVID-19 on stakeholders, including the impact on workers related to their business operations as well as value chains.
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about an unprecedented crisis, exacerbating existing inequalities and endangering Human Rights.
The details showed that the workers should be retained where possible, with businesses endeavoring to mitigate, as much as is possible, the negative impacts of unemployment through consultation and dialogue with unions and other worker bodies.
The study also showed that the socially vulnerable groups, such as women, children, elderly persons, persons with disabilities, minorities, transgender persons, and others, are particularly vulnerable to both the epidemiological and social impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, and as such businesses should seek to mitigate the impacts upon them.
Therefore, it has also brought to light the fundamental relationship between business activity and human rights, and increased awareness about the responsibility of business enterprises to take actions to minimise the potential negative impacts of the pandemic on human rights in the context of business activity, through dialogue and collaboration with other stakeholders.
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