Global labour relations. The influence of government policy The MNE Declaration provides principles which all parties involved can observe on a voluntary basis. A revised MNE Declaration could therefore increase the need of member States to adopt coherent national policies. The case studies evaluated in this report rarely pay close attention to the influence of government policies on the decision of MNEs to engage in global labour relations and to conclude GFAs. Stevis (2010) is an exception; in his report for the ILO he includes a few examples of how government policies can influence the incentives of companies to sign a GFA. Multinational compa- xxxx are sometimes (partly) owned by States. In such cases States can exert a direct influence on a company’s policy; and can moreover provide incentives to companies through regulatory frameworks. In France, social responsibility reporting policies may facilitate GFAs (Stevis, 2010). In May 2015, France’s National Assembly passed a law on due diligence requirements, holding very large compa- xxxx accountable for human rights violations in their supply chains (ECCJ, 2015). Such laws may increase the need on the side of MNEs to engage in labour relations on a global scale and to conclude GFAs in order to better regulate their supply chains. Moreover, States can influence the incentives for companies to sign GFAs that include rules on access to public procurement markets. States can create a competitive advantage for MNEs that pay a living wage and respect workers’ rights in their supply chains. The ILO should encourage its member States to consider GFAs as indicators of good practice in their public procurement stipulations.
