Canadian firms behaving badly abroad? A new ombudsperson is going after you

Canadian companies that behave badly abroad are getting a new overseer tasked with cracking down on unethical corporate behaviour.

International Trade Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne announced the creation Wednesday of an ombudsperson for responsible enterprise in the mining, oil and gas, and garment industries. The Liberals says that checks off another box on the list of campaign promises they’ve fulfilled as the government passes the halfway point in its mandate.

While Champagne did not say whether the ombudsperson will have the power to compel the disclosure of documents during investigations, he did say he wanted to be clear that he is prepared to use that power as minister and that companies will not have the option not to engage.

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When asked whether the role would come with the power to compel companies to co-operate with investigations, Champagne was similarly blunt.

“We have the authority and I’m prepared to use that authority to compel documents if need be.”

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In 2009, the Conservatives established the Office of the Extractive Sector Corporate Social Responsibility Counsellor and tasked it with advising companies working in the extractive sector on best practices for corporate social responsibility.

That position was criticized by some human rights groups who said it did not have any real means to enforce the guidelines it advocates or to investigate companies that refused to co-operate.

At its core, corporate social responsibility is the notion that companies should work to have a positive effect on the communities and countries they operate in.

The principle is a response to practices by some companies that do things ranging from offering bribes to criminal syndicates holding control over the territories they operate in to companies that dump industrial waste in rivers and oceans, or that offer poor standards of employment to the workers they use in other countries with less stringent employment standards than their home country.

There are thousands of complaints against such companies on industry watchdog sites like MiningWatch.org.

Hassan Yussuf, president of the Canadian Labour Congress, echoed comments from Champagne that the role will aim to strengthen the Canadian brand abroad by pressuring companies to do business better.

“Canadians don’t want our flag flying in front of a company that hires thugs or commits gang rapes,” Yussuf said.

The Canadian Labour Congress will also be one of the number of companies and organizations sitting on a new advisory council tasked with shaping the guiding principles of the ombudsperson office.

The Mining Association of Canada, Prospectors and Developers of Canada, the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, the Canadian Apparel Federation, Amnesty International, the Canadian Network on Corporate Accountability and United Steelworkers will also serve on the body.

Their role will be to come up with clear guidelines for what resources the ombudsperson should have and how far their powers should reach.

Champagne said those guiding principles will be released to the public in the coming months.