China Business
Principles
2004 – Coca-Cola Company
WHEREAS: our company's business practices in China
respect human and labor rights of workers.
The eleven principles below were designed to commit a company to a
widely accepted and thorough set of human and labor rights standards for China.
They were defined by the International Labor Organization and the United
Nations Covenants on Economic, Social & Cultural Rights, and Civil &
Political Rights. They have been signed by the Chinese government and China's
national laws.
(1) No goods or products produced within our
company's facilities or those of suppliers shall be manufactured by bonded
labor, forced labor, within prison camps or as part of reform-through-labor or
reeducation-through-labor programs.
(2) Our facilities and
suppliers shall adhere to wages that meet workers' basic needs, fair and decent
working hours, and at a minimum, to the wage and hour guidelines provided by
China's national labor laws.
(3) Our facilities and
suppliers shall prohibit the use of corporal punishment, any physical, sexual
or verbal abuse or harassment of workers.
(4) Our facilities and
suppliers shall use production methods that do not negatively affect the
worker's occupational safety and health.
(5) Our facilities and
suppliers shall not call on police or military to enter their premises to
prevent workers from exercising their rights.
(6) We shall undertake
to promote the following freedoms among our employees and the employees of our
suppliers: freedom of association and assembly, including the rights to form unions
and bargain collectively; freedom of expression, and freedom from arbitrary
arrest or detention.
(7) Company employees
and those of our suppliers shall not face discrimination in hiring,
remuneration or promotion based on age, gender, marital status, pregnancy,
ethnicity, region of origin, labor, political or religious activity, or on
involvement in demonstrations, past records of arrests or internal exile for
peaceful protest, or membership in organizations committed to non-violent
social or political change.
(8) Our facilities and
suppliers shall use environmentally responsible methods of production that have
minimum adverse impact on land, air and water quality.
(9) Our facilities and
suppliers shall prohibit child labor, at a minimum comply with guidelines on
minimum age for employment within China's national labor laws.
(10) We will not sell or
provide products or technology in China that can be used to commit human rights
violations or labor rights abuse.
(11) We will issue
annual statements to the China Working Group detailing our efforts to uphold
these principles and to promote these basic freedoms.
RESOLVED: Stockholders request the Board of
Directors to make all possible lawful efforts to implement and/or increase
activity on each of the principles named above in the People's Republic of
China.
SUPPORTING STATEMENT: As U.S. companies
import more goods, consumer and shareholder concern is growing about working
conditions in China that fall below basic standards of fair and humane
treatment. We hope that our company can prove to be a leader in its industry
and embrace these principles.
Sponsors:
Lead: Harrington Investments, Ms. Alana Johnk Director of Research
& Dev.