This seminar course is designed to help students understand the human rights standards and responsibilities – legal and moral - that affect business and the remedies available to human rights advocates seeking to influence corporate policies and practices. It also encourages participants to consider how human rights can guide corporate decision-making by exploring current best practices among corporate human rights initiatives.
The phenomena of globalisation and human rights are two of the most influential features of international relations in the twenty-first century. This course will examine the ways in which these two spheres intersect and diverge, interrogating the extent to which their goals are contradictory and/ or mutually supporting.
Awareness of the increasing power of transnational corporation’s vis-à-vis the States in which they operate as well as the impact that business can have on human rights – positive and negative – is raising the volume on calls for businesses to respect human rights. Human rights advocates have shined a spotlight on human rights conditions in a wide range of transnational industries including oil and mining; the manufacturing of apparel, carpets, footwear, sporting goods, and toys; the agricultural production of coffee, tea, cocoa and bananas for global markets; and the pharmaceutical and other high technology sectors.
The abuses at issue include complicity with governments that violate human rights, child and forced labour, limits on freedom of association, and dangerous and unhealthy conditions for workers and communities. During the same period, business and human rights has emerged as a distinct field within the broader corporate responsibility movement. In response to growing pressure to address human rights issues, transnational companies have undertaken human rights initiatives that seek to manage human rights risks, and in some cases, promote human rights as a source of competitive advantage in the marketplace. This seminar analyses the challenges and opportunities that arise for advocates and business managers at the intersection of business operations and efforts to promote international human rights.
Business and human rights is a constantly evolving field. Accordingly, students are encouraged to follow recent and emerging developments in the field at the resources provided in the reading guide.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
By the conclusion of this course, it is intended that students who have successfully completed all of the course requirements will be able to:- Explain, distinguish and apply, to a Masters level standard, the terms, theories and concepts, global frameworks and major recent events and debates relating to the field of business and human rights;
- Demonstrate the cognitive, technical and creative skills required to explore, analyse and synthesise complex theoretical positions and propositions at an abstract level and apply these to practical, ‘real-world’ scenarios, in various contexts, relating to business and human rights;
- Identify and demonstrate the relevant legal and regulatory research, problem-solving and argumentative approaches appropriate to resolving complex issues and dilemmas arising in the field of business and human rights.
- Demonstrate the skills required to communicate theoretical and practical knowledge relating to the applicability of course concepts to their other professional or further scholarly work, as well as showing an advanced ability to reflect critically on this;
- Demonstrate the ability, to a Masters level standard, to plan and produce a substantial research project in the field of business and human rights, analysing and critiquing issues covered in the course.
Other Information
This is an intensive course with a 4 day compulsory intensive (see LLM timetable for dates).Approximately 6 weeks from the completion of the intensive your final assessment will be due. Contact with fellow students and the convenor, both prior to the intensive and after, is conducted via the Wattle course site.
Indicative Assessment
Assessment for this course will likely consist of:- 70% from a research essay of 6,000-7,000 words; and
- 30% from online quizzes and a participation assessment element.
Students must rely on the approved Course Study Guide which will be posted to the Wattle course website approximately 4 weeks prior to the commencement of the course.
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
Approximately 26 hours of face-to-face teaching. The course will also require advanced preparation through assigned
readings. In total, it is anticipated that the hours required for
completion this course (class preparation, teaching and completion of
assessment) will not exceed 120 hours.
Click here for the Graduate Masters Program timetable
Requisite and Incompatibility
Preliminary Reading
Students must rely on the approved Course Study Guide which will be posted to the Wattle course site approximately 4 weeks prior to the commencement of the course. An e-brick will be available on the Wattle course site.
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
If you are a domestic graduate coursework or international student you will be required to pay tuition fees. Tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 3
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are an undergraduate student and have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). You can find your student contribution amount for each course at Fees. Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2017 | $3420 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2017 | $4878 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.