Strengthening Collective Bargaining Through Public Procurement: Report Launch

At the end of June, FES Ireland launched its latest report on public procurement and collective bargaining at Europe House in Dublin.

Written by Dr Lorraine Ryan, Dr Juliette McMahon, and Dr Jonathan Lavelle of University of Limerick, the report argues that public procurement remains an underused tool for promoting collective bargaining in Ireland. Drawing on comparisons with Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom, it explores what Ireland can learn from other approaches.

Anna Kraft, Country Director of FES Ireland, highlighted that the report comes at a crucial moment, as a recent EU court ruling now gives the Irish government clear legal cover to do more.

Owen Reidy, General Secretary of Irish Congress of Trade Unions, reinforced this message, noting that both the recent European Court of Justice ruling and the Government’s Action Plan on Collective Bargaining create a strong basis for action. Public procurement should support, rather than undermine, decent work and collective bargaining.