Source: European Parliament
The rules of public procurement are governed by the EU Directive on Public Procurement[1]. In particular, Article 18(2) of the directive (the so-called horizontal social clause) states that ‘Member States shall take appropriate measures to ensure that in the performance of public contracts economic operators comply with applicable obligations in the fields of environmental, social and labour law established by Union law, national law, collective agreements or by the international environmental, social and labour law provisions listed in Annex X’.
Individual Member States should ensure that rules resulting from the EU social acquis are respected in the context of public procurement. While the directive does not have specific clause on training and working conditions, the Commission supports Member States to invest in skills and jobs through various funding channels such as the European Social Fund Plus or the Recovery and Resilience Fund.
The Union will further support labour and social standards to ensure that the transition is fair and equitable for all, including in the context of the Commission’s forthcoming evaluation of the legislative framework on public procurement. On labour inspection, the European Labour Authority is supporting the work of national authorities.
- [1] Directive 2014/24/EU of the European Parliament and the Council of 26 February 2014 on public procurement and repealing Directive 2004/18/EC, OJ L 94, 28.3.2014, p. 65. — https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2014/24/oj/eng.