Access to remedy
Access to remedy is the practical ability of people affected by business-related human rights harm to use legitimate processes and obtain effective redress. Remedies may be judicial or non-judicial and can include stopping the harm, restitution, compensation, rehabilitation, apology, guarantees of non-repetition, or other rights-compatible outcomes.
In simple terms
Under the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, states should ensure effective judicial and non-judicial mechanisms, while businesses that cause or contribute to adverse impacts should provide for or cooperate in remediation. Operational grievance mechanisms can help identify and address concerns early, but they should not block access to courts or unions. Effectiveness requires legitimacy, accessibility, predictability, equity, transparency, rights-compatible outcomes, continuous learning, and engagement with affected groups. Human rights due diligence should connect findings to remediation when harm occurs.
Why it matters
Identifying risk is not enough when people have already been harmed. Access to remedy turns responsibility into a route for correction and accountability, especially for workers and communities facing language, cost, information, power, or geographic barriers. Strong mechanisms also help Responsible sourcing programs learn from recurring cases instead of treating complaints as isolated communications problems.
Example
Workers report recruitment-fee deductions through a multilingual channel that allows confidential complaints and representation. The company investigates with worker participation, reimburses fees, corrects contracts, protects complainants from retaliation, and changes supplier controls. The process supports Access to remedy because it produces a rights-compatible outcome and feeds lessons back into Human rights due diligence.