Corporate Legal Accountability Research Assistant

Details

Reports to: Corporate Legal Accountability Senior Researcher

Salary (part-time, 3 days/week): GBP 16,200-19,200, commensurate with experience and adjusted according to location (the range is aligned to London cost of living; if based in another location, the range will be adjusted accordingly)

Closing date: 28 May 2025

Location: Remote. Must overlap with CET time zone for at least 4 hours per day

Contract type: 1 year, part time, (21 hours/week)

Annual leave: 14 days/year plus bank holidays, and 5 days for office closure in August and year-end.

Start: As soon as possible

About the Organisation

Business & Human Rights Resource Centre (the Resource Centre) is an international organisation with 80 Global Team members in over 30 locations worldwide. We are a UK-registered charity. With partners and allies worldwide, the Resource Centre seeks to put human rights at the heart of business to deliver a just economy, climate justice, and end corporate abuse. We seek to deliver our mission through three strategic goals: 1) shared prosperity for society; 2) corporate duty of care for human rights and environmental justice; and 3) safe and enabling environments in which communities and workers can advocate for their rights and interests, including through free and fair negotiations.

The Resource Centre has four priority programmes: rights of workers in global supply chains; rights of communities seeking responsible natural resources use and a just energy transition; rights of people to accountable digital technologies; and rights of human rights defenders protected from attack and restrictions. Across these programs, we pursue our advocacy aims by building collective power with people and communities subjected to human rights harms by business; with allies, we influence decision-makers in government, investment and business to facilitate transformation to a just economy; and we provide the evidence and build the action base of our movement to increase accountability and transparency of the private sector. Gender and racial justice lenses are designed into/applied across all our work.

About the position:

The Research Assistant will support
the Corporate Legal Accountability and Western Europe programmes in implementing the Resource Centre’s programme of work related to corporate legal accountability, human rights due diligence regulation, and tracking of strategic litigation trends related to business and human rights around the world. The successful candidate will help develop a new portal tracking remedy for human rights harms using developing and implemented regulation; undertake research and analysis in the field of corporate legal accountability including in respect of the proposed UN Treaty on Business and Human Rights; and contribute to the Resource Centre’s established corporate legal accountability products such as our Quarterly Update on business and human rights legal trends.

Essential skills and experience:

• Demonstrated experience in legal and regulatory research.

• Ability to present complex information in a succinct and balanced way to ensure accessibility for various stakeholders, with a strong attention to detail and accuracy

• Familiarity with the global regulatory framework for business and human rights, including discussions around the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (EU CSDDD), as well as ability to research and understand domestic regulatory initiatives in key jurisdictions.

• 2+ years’ work in the field of corporate legal accountability, human rights, law, global policy.

• LLB, LLM , Juris Doctor or equivalent.

• Fluent English-language skills (reading, writing, speaking)

• Strong writing skills

• Values: Strong, demonstrated commitment to business and human rights. Share the values and ethos of the Resource Centre.

• Team player: Experience of working in high performing multi-cultural and international teams, working with colleagues to deliver high impact programmes. Experience with remote, inter-disciplinary, and culturally diverse teams is highly desirable.

• Organisation and initiative: Able to work efficiently, independently, and methodically to support achievement of deliverables; strong prioritisation skills; self-motivated and comfortable working independently within agreed framework while maintaining communication with a global team in different time zones and geographies.

• Additional language skills such as French, German and Spanish are a plus.

Roles & responsibilitie

• Lead on research, data collection, and analysis for new remedy portal related to human rights due diligence regulation.

• Work with the Corporate Legal Accountability and Western Europe teams on communication and dissemination of research and reports.

• Help conduct consultations with key stakeholders.

• Website responsibilities including inputs highlighting strategic litigation trends in business and human rights.

• Other tasks as typically required of a Research Assistant.

Essential functions of the position include consistently operating a laptop, remaining in a stationary or standing position while doing so, and participating in a few video calls per day. Some regional or international travel may be expected.

The Business & Human Rights Resource Centre is a diverse, global team. We are committed to providing equal opportunities for everyone regardless of their background. We acknowledge that people from certain backgrounds are under-represented in this area of work and seek to directly address that through our hiring practices. We particularly encourage applications from women, BAME applicants, people with disabilities, and people who identify as LGBTQI+ or Indigenous.

To apply

Complete and submit this job application form via our jobs portal. Kindly note that this application form is required; we will not accept CVs. If you need additional support, please contact Bea Ocampo, ocampo@businuess-humanrights.org

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