Confrontation and Governance: Access to Remedy for Corporate Human Rights Abuses in Latin America

• In Event: Social Economy and Solidarity in Latin America

Abstract

Claims against companies for human rights abuses persist, despite major advances in human rights around the world, including the spread global human rights protections, increased corporate social responsibility, and industry-specific agreements regarding improved business conduct. While these efforts have sought to reduce the likelihood of abuse, one key component of today’s guiding document on business and human rights—the UNGPs—is improving access to remedy for such abuses. And yet, we know little about why victims of corporate human rights abuse have access to remedy in some cases and not others.
This paper seeks to uncover why access to judicial and non-judicial remedy varies. Using a newly created database of nearly 1400 allegations of corporate human rights abuses in Latin America, this paper tests hypotheses drawn from the domestic political economy and management literatures. It draws from the pragmatism and agonism literatures in political theory to develop a new approach—varieties of remedy—to better understand state, firm, and civil society behavior in the business and human rights landscape. The paper presents new findings and suggests that varieties of remedy, as an alternative to the widespread “governance gap” narrative, better illustrates how when and why victims have access to remedy in some cases and not others.

Author

• Tricia D Olsen, Univ. of Denver