SIPTU Contract Services Sector Organiser, Ed Kenny, discussed how the provisions of EU public procurement directives could be used to protect and improve workplace conditions at the Uni Global Conference held in the Waterfront Centre in Belfast in March.
In a discussion which included other trade union leaders and Members of the European Parliament it was agreed that a revision of the rules governing EU public procurement in 2014 has led to an erosion of working conditions, lowered service quality and distorted fair competition.
Ed Kenny said: “There are more than 250,000 public bodies in the EU which spend more than €2 trillion per year on the purchase of services, work and supplies. This is equivalent to 14% of EU States’ Gross Domestic Product. Unions are working together at EU level to ensure that a link is made between the offering of these public contracts and companies which respect workers’ rights.
“Together we are fighting to ensure that tendering processes will take account of workers and is not just based on what appears to be the cheapest price.”
He added: “Public contracts should only go to companies that respect workers, negotiate with trade unions and are covered by collective bargaining. The revision of these EU directives must have an emphasis on public contracts containing social and quality criteria. This should replace price as the key component in the tendering process.”
Photo caption: SIPTU Sector Organiser Ed Kenny and Italian Trade unionist (FILCAMS-CGIL) Paola Bassetti discussing the public procurement at the Uni Global Conference held in the Waterfront Centre in Belfast in March.