ISO 26000 Draft Standard Offers Guidance on Social Responsibility
October 1, 2009 // Published as a news service by IHS
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) published ISO 26000 - Guidance on social responsibility as a draft international standard (DIS).
The guidance in ISO 26000 draws on best practices developed by existing public and private sector social responsibility initiatives, according to ISO.
The standard has several key points:
- It provides guidance on the underlying principles of social responsibility, the core subjects and issues pertaining to social responsibility and on ways to integrate socially responsible behavior into existing organizational strategies, systems, practices and processes.
- It is not a management system standard. It is not intended or appropriate for certification purposes or regulatory or contractual use.
- It is intended for use by those beginning to address social responsibility, as well as those more experienced with its implementation.
ISO 26000 is consistent with, and complements, relevant declarations and conventions by the U.N. and its constituents, including the International Labour Organization (ILO), with whom ISO established a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to ensure consistency with ILO labor standards.
ISO also signed MoUs with the U.N. Global Compact Office and with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development for cooperation on the development of ISO 26000.
The draft standard will go through a five-month balloting period from September through February during which the national member bodies of ISO will be able to vote and comment on the text. Participating liaison organizations can also comment.
If the DIS vote is successful, the document, with eventual modifications, will be circulated to the ISO members as a final DIS. If the vote is passed, ISO 26000 will be published as a standard in late 2010.
Source: International Organization for Standardization (ISO).