Standards and Human Rights
At Cerrejón, the responsible management of our operations and the well-being of our employees and neighboring communities is a priority. We seek to uphold the International Labour Organization Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work and the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Our goal is to ensure continuous improvement in strengthening our Human Rights due diligence processes. To achieve this, we subject our practices to external audits conducted by independent third parties.
We are committed to respecting human rights in line with the United Nations (UN) Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and to upholding and promoting respect for human rights within our business, and throughout our supply chain, to enable people’s basic rights and freedoms.
Since 2008, we have been working to align with key international standards such as the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) Performance Standards, and the Global Compact. In addition, in 2011 we joined the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), committing to its sustainability framework.
Human Rights Due Diligence
We conduct human rights due diligence to identify, prevent and mitigate human rights risks and impacts across our business. We regularly review our salient human rights risks and publicly report on them. To this end, the principles that govern our due diligence process include:
We value respect for human rights in our operations, reflected in our public and transparent policy, along with reports on the processes and measures we implement.
We recognize how our operations may affect stakeholders and have established measures to identify, prevent, and mitigate risks and impacts.
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Cerrejón informs and engages in dialogue with its stakeholders regarding due diligence efforts through various mechanisms, such as engagement with authorities, communities, and NGOs. Actions taken are reported annually in the Sustainability Report and in the Human Rights risk and impact analyses. Every three years, we consult with communities, employees, and other groups to gather feedback and suggestions for better risk and impact management.
Cerrejón integrates the results of risk and impact analyses into the company’s different management processes to support monitoring and tracking systems.
When an impact cannot be prevented, Cerrejón has participatory mechanisms in place to investigate cases requiring remedy. This process, established in 2010 with the creation of the Grievance Office, seeks to implement the UNGP remediation pillar.
Our assurance processes are designed to support the principles of adaptive management and align with the ICMM Performance Expectations. Cerrejón monitors the compliance of its social management and verifies adherence to the requirements set forth in social standards. This program identifies gaps and opportunities for improvement, which are addressed by the responsible areas to support social performance.
Ten years ago, the company and its shareholders, to improve the management of impacts caused by the operations and contribute to the improvement of living conditions in the territory and communities in our area of influence, convened an independent panel called the Third Party Review.
Learn more about Third Party Review
Result of the study of Risks and Impacts on Human Rights 2021
In 2021, Trust Consultores developed the third Study of Risks and Impacts on Human Rights of Cerrejón, to identify the real or potential effects on the Human Rights of the people and groups with which we interact, derived from our activities and those associated with the actions of our suppliers, contractors and other business allies.
Learn about our action plan to address the Outstanding Facts identified in our third Human Rights Risk and Impact Assessment.
Learn about the management report on the action plans to address Cerrejón’s Significant Human Rights Issues