Skip to main content
Back to Glossary
Definition

UN Global Compact

The UN Global Compact asks participating companies to embed Ten Principles on human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption in their operations and report publicly on their progress each year.

What is the UN Global Compact?

The UN Global Compact is a voluntary United Nations initiative. Its Ten Principles cover human rights in Principles 1-2, labour in 3-6, environment in 7-9 and anti-corruption in 10. Participation is a company commitment, not a certification of performance.

Why does the UN Global Compact matter to you?

A customer, investor or tender may ask whether your company participates or whether its policies align with the Ten Principles. Check the participant profile and latest Communication on Progress (CoP). A policy that only names the initiative does not show which principle, control or record supports your answer.

How does the UN Global Compact work?

A joining company commits at chief-executive level to embed the principles in strategy and operations. From the calendar year after joining, business participants submit an annual CoP. For 2026, the required submission was a signed CEO Statement plus the digital questionnaire or an uploaded sustainability report. The main window closed on 31 July 2026; a participant still marked non-communicating after 31 December 2026 is delisted on 1 January 2027.

What mistakes should you avoid?

  • Calling participation a certification, audit or UN endorsement.
  • Claiming alignment without mapping all ten principles to policies, controls and owners.
  • Using an old CoP while the public participant profile shows a later status.
  • Using a UN Global Compact logo without checking which logo your company may use and the current logo and branding guidance.

Is UN Global Compact participation mandatory?

No. Joining is voluntary. A customer contract or tender can still ask you to participate or show equivalent policies and controls.

What should you send when a customer asks for proof?

Send the current participant-profile link, latest public CoP and a ten-principle cross-reference. Name the policy, accountable owner and supporting record for each principle. Do not describe a commitment as proof that every control works.

Example

Suppose an aluminium extruder in Malaysia is preparing its 2026 CoP. For G2, its code of conduct covers employees and suppliers in all four topic rows: human rights, labour rights, environment and anti-corruption. For G5, its due diligence covers its own operations and suppliers for human rights and labour, but only its own operations for environment and corruption. G5.1 therefore appears for two topics. Supplier screening found severe-risk relationships for human rights but not labour, so it records one Yes and one No. The response has 4 G2 selections + 4 G5 selections + 2 G5.1 selections = 10 recorded answers, each linked to the code, due-diligence file or supplier-screening record. Those selections document its answers; they do not certify performance.

Where it comes up

UN Global Compact Principles 1-10 on human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruptionThe Ten Principles, Principles 1-10 (checked 2026-08-20)Official source2026 CoP Question G2 code of conduct across the four principle areas2026 Communication on Progress Questionnaire, G2, page 9 (checked 2026-08-20)Official source2026 CoP Questions G5 and G5.1 due diligence across operations, suppliers and the value chain2026 Communication on Progress Questionnaire, G5 and G5.1, page 12 (checked 2026-08-20)Official source2026 annual CoP submission and participant-status deadlinesCommunication on Progress requirements and 2026 deadlines (checked 2026-08-20)Official source

Related terms

ILO fundamental Conventions

The ILO fundamental Conventions are ten international labour standards covering freedom of association and collective bargaining, forced labour, child labour, discrimination, and a safe and healthy working environment.

UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights

The UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights set out the state duty to protect human rights, the corporate responsibility to respect them, and access to remedy for people harmed by business activity.

OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct

The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct are government-backed, voluntary recommendations that ask enterprises to use risk-based due diligence to prevent and address adverse impacts on people, the environment, and society.

Sustainable Development Goals

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are 17 connected UN goals for improving social, economic, and environmental conditions by 2030, used by companies as a voluntary framework for prioritizing and explaining relevant impacts.

Supplier code of conduct

A supplier code of conduct sets the labour, health and safety, environmental, ethics, record-keeping, and subcontractor rules a buyer expects its suppliers to follow and be able to prove.

Sources

Last verified 2026-08-20

Ready to start?

Tell us what you need.

Bring us the sustainability request, reporting deadline, or strategy question you are facing. We will read it and suggest a practical first step, and the first conversation is free.

Get in touch
UN Global Compact Definition | Keslio