Details

• Location: preferably based in Hong Kong. Candidates based in other countries with exceptional qualifications may be considered.
• Fee: GBP 1,550 – 1,700 per month, adjusted according to experience (if based outside Hong Kong, will be adjusted accordingly)
• Working hours: 17.5 hours per week (2.5 days per week)
• Contract Type: 1-year consultancy contract, with the possibility of extension (see the section on terms and conditions)
• Closing Date: 16 February 2025, 11:59PM HK time

To apply: Complete and return this application form via our jobs portal. Kindly note that the application form is required; we will not accept CVs. If you need any additional support, please reach out to Bea Ocampo ocampo@business-humanrights.org

Job Purpose:

To promote greater transparency and accountability for companies’ social and environmental impacts in the Greater China region (including mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan) and companies headquartered in the region operating overseas, and to empower others to act, by:

• Building Transparency: Collecting & publicising information from a wide range of sources on our multilingual website (available in 10 languages – including English & Chinese) and in our Weekly Update and Chinese Responsible Investment Overseas newsletters, to bring attention to concerns related to social & environmental impacts as well as positive steps by business. Communicating on issues related to business’ responsibility on social and environmental issues in the region through blog posts, media articles, and briefing notes.
• Promoting accountability: Seeking public responses from companies to concerns of misconduct. The Resource Centre has approached companies over 10000 times for responses to allegations, with all time global response rate of 55%.
• Empowering advocates: By ensuring that organisations, companies, and governments throughout the region are aware of how to use the Resource Centre to obtain the information and guidance they need, and to channel their concerns to an influential audience. This will be achieved through effective representation, online and in-person networking.

About us:

Business & Human Rights Resource Centre is a high-impact, global organisation headquartered in London, UK. We engage various stakeholders, including governments, businesses, and investors, to advance protection and respect for human rights in business and hold companies accountable for abuse. We do this by working in solidarity with human rights advocates in civil society, business and governments to support bold leadership for human rights in business and strengthened corporate accountability, due diligence, and effective remedy for abuse. We also build transparency of advances, challenges, and abuse of human rights in business. We generate and share information that is relevant, reliable and up to date, and we work with advocates around the world to use this information to drive positive change that puts human rights at the heart of business.

Responsibilities:

• Conduct online research to identify stories about companies’ social and environmental impacts in the Greater China region (including mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan) and companies headquartered in the region operating overseas. Present the information on the Centre’s website and social media in a compelling format for users.
• Invite companies to respond to concerns raised by civil society about their conducts. This involves an initial approach by email and fax, and often extensive follow-up via phone as well as email with relevant representatives of the company.
• Provide assistance on research projects including benchmarking and other desktop researches to illustrate trends related to human rights policies and practices of companies headquartered and operating in the region, with the aim to push for higher human rights performances by the companies. The social impacts of Chinese investment overseas and workers’ rights across the region are two topics that the research assistant will likely be working on.
• Assist in writing materials for our website and outreach, including blog posts, briefing notes and papers, and articles to be submitted to relevant media outlets.
• Translate materials and coordinate with external translators so that an increase amount of guidance and case materials from other languages will be made available in Chinese-language, and materials originally in Chinese will be available in English.
• Participate in global team projects as needed, and in one-hour online meetings with the Centre’s Global Team, every two weeks.

Key competencies and attributes

• Values: Strong, demonstrated commitment to human rights. Shares values and ethos of the Resource Centre.
• Experience and Education: 1-3+ years’ work in the field of business and human rights, corporate social responsibility, labour rights, development, environment or social justice (preferably on China) is preferred. Applicants without such experience will also be considered, but must demonstrate good understandings and proven interest in business and human rights and other social issues in general.
• Research and analytical skills: Able to search and identify relevant information online; persistent in seeking out difficult-to-find information; creative in identifying new sources of information.
• Representation skills: Able to represent the organisation in the region, including at meetings and conferences.
• Outreach and networking: Able to foster productive, professional relationships with a broad range of contacts, including advocates, company representatives, and government officials.
• Languages: Fluent Chinese-language (particularly Mandarin) and strong English-language skills (reading, writing, speaking).
• Communications: Strong writing skills, including succinct writing for the website.
• Team-work: Able to operate effectively and constructively as part of a global team, and ensure smooth communication despite geographical distances between team members.
• Self-initiative and motivation: Able to use own initiative, and work independently within agreed framework; motivated by achieving results and completing tasks.
• Organisation and prioritisation: Strong organisational and prioritisation skills, enabling efficient and effective work.

Requirements:

• 1-3+ years’ work in the field of corporate social responsibility, human rights, labour rights, development, environmental or social justice (preferably related to China) is preferred.
• Applicants without experience described above will also be considered, but must demonstrate good understandings and proven interest in business and human rights and other social issues in general.
• A Bachelor’s or Master’s degree, regardless of disciplines will be considered.
• Fluency in Chinese-language (particularly Mandarin) and strong English-language skills (reading, writing, speaking).
• Commitment to advancing social and environmental commitment from the business sector.
• The right to work in Hong Kong (applicants from other locations will also be considered, but priorities will be given to those based in Hong Kong)

Terms and conditions

Note that this is a part-time consultancy position. Payment will be made on the Research Assistant’s presentation of a monthly invoice showing the number of hours worked. The Research Assistant will be responsible for paying from the fees his/her/their own taxes, health insurance, pension, etc, and those costs are taken into account in calculating the fees. The Resource Centre will reimburse necessary work-related expenses such as for travel.

Hours: The Research Assistant is expected to work 2.5 days (17.5 hours) per week. The hours worked are flexible, provided that there are effective communications with team members in other regions, and that the hours are spread reasonably throughout a week.

The Research Assistant will have the freedom to organise paid days off from doing consulting work for the Resource Centre, in an amount expected to be 12 days during the year (84 hours – i.e., equivalent to 24 days per year for full-time work). The Research Assistant will not be expected to work on local holidays.

Reports to: East Asia Senior Researcher & Representative

The consultancy contract will be a one-year contract, which can be extended by mutual agreement.