This paper explores the differences, similarities and synergies between voluntary and binding approaches to international rules. Voluntary efforts to ensure that firms adhere to appropriate standards of business conduct have been an important recent development in international business. These...

Voluntary initiatives in the area of corporate responsibility have been among the major trends in international business in recent years. Business surveys show that most large OECD-based multinational enterprises have participated in this trend in one way or another. These initiatives involve,...

In the ongoing public debate on globalisation, concerns have been expressed about the economic, social and environmental impacts of deepening international trade and investment ties and about the activities of the multinational enterprises. These concerns focus on a variety of issues including...

Government involvement in “voluntary” initiatives for corporate responsibility has been extensive. This chapter reviews four main types of involvement -- legal and regulatory incentives, tax expenditures on the NGO sector, contributions to compliance expertise and moral suasion. The most...

Bribery is becoming a high priority public concern and the legal framework and enforcement apparatus used in the fight against it are being developed in the OECD and elsewhere. Reflecting these civic and legal pressures, firms now often deal with bribery in their codes of corporate conduct –...

This paper provides a revised measure of regulatory restrictions on inward foreign direct investment (FDI) for OECD countries and extends the approach to 13 non-member countries. The methodology is largely similar to that adopted in the previous version of the OECD indicator and covers three...

Many companies have implemented programmes that help them to respond to societal concerns about the economic, social and environmental impacts of their activities. These help them to manage their compliance with legal or regulatory requirements and their response to “softer” forms of social...

Based on a slight extension of the inventory of 233 codes of corporate conduct collected for an earlier study (TD/TC/WP(98)74/FINAL), this paper takes a more in-depth look at the contents of the codes with respect to issue coverage and code implementation procedures. The main findings of this...

The OECD Guidelines are recommendations by governments to multinational enterprises (MNEs) operating in or from the 33 countries that adhere to the Guidelines. The Guidelines help ensure that MNEs act in harmony with the policies of countries in which they operate and with societal expectations....

The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises (the “Guidelines”) are one of many intergovernmental instruments that seek to promote economic, social and environmental progress. The OECD Guidelines do this by establishing concepts and principles for responsible business conduct that help...