Corporate Responsibility Directive Receives Final Approval, Finnish Government Plays Key Role in Revising Content

The Corporate Responsibility Directive recently received attention as the Council of Member States debated whether to overturn it, with Finland playing a key role in revising its content. The European Parliament finally approved the directive on Wednesday, requiring companies to adhere to a duty of care in their value chains.

The directive aims to address issues such as child labor, labor exploitation, biodiversity loss, and environmental pollution. Under the directive, companies with at least one thousand employees and a turnover of at least EUR 450 million are required to comply with the duty of care. Despite some delays, the core legislation of the directive remained unchanged.

The Finnish government pushed back against the clause on class action lawsuits included in the directive, but the matter was ultimately resolved to Finland’s satisfaction. Green MEP Heidi Hautala expressed optimism about the outcome after working on the directive for a long time. Together with Lara Wolters and Manon Aubryn, Hautala starred in a documentary about the development of the Corporate Responsibility Directive.

Finally, after several attempts by Belgium, holding the EU presidency at the time, secured the necessary majority of member states to support