Bosch joins Global Compact
Social responsibility has always been writ large at Bosch. Franz Fehrenbach, Chairman of the Board of Management, has now documented this fact in a letter written to Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations: Bosch has now joined the UN Secretary-General’s “Global Compact” initiative, which he suggested at the World Economic Forum in 1999 and which was launched one year later.
The purpose of the Global Compact is to enact social standards to accompany the process of globalization. To date, more than 1,700 members have joined the network. Aside from UN organizations, these include companies, economic associations, trade unions, and human rights organizations. The members of the initiative undertake to comply with the Global Compact’s ten principles and to promote their universal implementation. These principles include compliance with international human rights, the outlawing of child labor, forced labor, and compulsory labor, observance of equality of opportunity in employment, compliance with environmental standards and combat against corruption.
Signing up to the Global Compact, Franz Fehrenbach commented: “The Global Compact corresponds with the principles according to which we do business, and which are reflected in our Bosch values.” It was only at the beginning of April this year that the Board of Management and associate representatives of the Bosch Group documented their common basic principles of social responsibility in a joint declaration. By signing the Global Compact, Bosch is making this commitment known to an international audience.