The Government of Wales has put forward a new law on public procurement that will be a game-changer for working people. It will ensure that public contracts going to private companies are awarded to companies that offer decent working conditions.<\/p>\n
Too often, public contracts are awarded based only on one criteria: the lowest price. This incentivises companies to undercut each other on labour costs. As a result, public money has fueled a race to the bottom on working people\u2019s pay and conditions.<\/p>\n
The Welsh legal change turns this on its head. It ensures that public money is spent in a way that reinforces public good objectives. It would require all companies to meet standards of decent work and give workers\u2019 unions a strong oversight role. In doing so, it ensures that people who work in companies that get government contracts do so in conditions of dignity.<\/p>\n
The law goes a step further than excluding exploitative companies and reinforces collaboration between workers and employers. A Social Partnership Council will bring together workers\u2019 unions, employers’ organisations as well as government representatives to advise public bodies on social public procurement.<\/p>\n
\u201cPublic procurement is an essential tool governments have at their disposal to strengthen collective bargaining and deliver shared prosperity. Governments shouldn\u2019t be in the business of creating poverty jobs and the Welsh government is showing the way forward,\u201d said Oliver Roethig, Regional Secretary of UNI Europa.<\/p>\n
\nNEW: Welsh Gov publishes the new Social Partnership Bill. <\/p>\n
Welcoming the Bill @shavtaj<\/a> said: <\/p>\n
“This legislation is a landmark step. Social partnership delivers for workers and gives them a real role in shaping the decisions which impact them.”https:\/\/t.co\/XQ7dSsRDph<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Wales TUC Cymru (@walestuc) June 7, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n