Worker and Human Rights

The Office of Investment Policy (OIP) is responsible for implementing OPIC’s statutory requirements regarding worker rights and human rights in a manner consistent with Sections 231A of the Foreign Assistance Act and 533B of the annual Foreign Operations Appropriations Act across all OPIC-supported projects. OIP relies heavily on the project information provided by the investor, both in the application and in supplemental materials such as the business plan. Depending on the nature of the project, additional information may be required to perform a complete and thorough analysis.

Worker Rights
OPIC’s statutory requirements regarding worker rights can be summarized as follows:

• OPIC may operate in countries if they currently have, or are taking steps to adopt and implement, laws that extend internationally recognized worker rights.

• OPIC cannot provide assistance for any program, project, or activity that contributes to the violation of “internationally recognized workers rights.” These “internationally recognized worker rights” include:
  • The right of association;
  • The right to organize and bargain collectively;
  • Prohibition of forced or compulsory labor;
  • Minimum age for employment; and
  • Acceptable conditions of work with respect to minimum wages, hours of work, and occupational health and safety.
• OPIC must include the following language in every project contract:

“The investor agrees not to take actions to prevent employees of the foreign enterprise from lawfully exercising their right of association and their right to organize and bargain collectively. The investor further agrees to observe applicable laws relating to a minimum age for employment of children, acceptable conditions of work with respect to minimum wages, hours of work and occupational health and safety, and not to use forced labor. The investor is not responsible under this paragraph for the actions of a foreign government."

Every project is reviewed for its compliance with the OPIC statutory worker rights requirements. Each review includes a country-level analysis with respect to labor laws and general country labor conditions, and a project-level analysis with respect to sector and specific project activities, location, size, number of workers, and the nature of work performed.

Human Rights
The promotion of basic human rights is essential to successful OPIC-supported projects. The OPIC human rights clearance process is designed to ensure that OPIC-supported projects meet their statutory requirements, as required by the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961. For each project seeking OPIC support, OPIC works in close consultation with the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL), prior to making a final commitment.