Good intentions meet harsh realities: Social dialogue and precarious work in industrial cleaning

Larsen, Trine Pernille; Mailand, Mikkel; Schulten, Thorsten

doi:10.1177/0143831x19880265

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 31 publications

(38 reference statements)

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“…As Kelman (2002, p. 12) stated, 'the system continues to exist more to avoid corruption than to generate incremental value creation'. As a result of a lack of a 'whole-of-government' perspective, the cost of addressing the negative social and environmental externalities of low-bid public procurement continues to be downloaded to taxpayers, causing expenditures to rise in other departments of government (Erridge, 2007;Jaehrling, 2015;Jaehrling et al, 2018;Larsen et al, 2019;Lloyd and McCue, 2004;Schulten et al, 2012;Šličiuvienė, 2017;Sturgess, 2017;Telles, 2017). Telgen et al (2007) found that the delivery of broader government objectives, such as SDG 12.7 sustainable public procurement, is only possible at the most advanced levels of public procurement maturity.…”

Section: The Un Sdgs and Public Procurement In The Twenty-first Centurymentioning

confidence: 99%

Public procurement – price-taker or market-shaper?

Hamilton

2022

CPOIB

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Purpose This paper examines the role of government procurement as a social policy mechanism within a multilateral open trading system. Government regulations globally are being transformed to foster more responsible business conduct in multinational enterprises (MNEs). Yet, concern that sustainability may present a discriminatory barrier to trade has stalled the progress of sustainable public procurement (SPP) at the international level, raising questions regarding the role and scope of the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) to align taxpayer-funded contracts with the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals. Design/methodology/approach With a focus on social sustainability, this paper reviews the grey and academic literature to assess the changing landscape of public procurement policy and supply chain legislation in high-income countries. Findings Frontrunner nations are adopting a mandatory approach to sustainable public procurement and due diligence legislation is elevating supply chain risk from reputational damage to legal liability. While technological innovation and the clean, green production of manufactured goods dominates the sustainable public procurement literature, the social aspects of sustainability poverty, inequality and human rights remain underrepresented. Research limitations/implications The scope of this paper is limited to the examination of government procurement covered by the WTO-GPA (2012). Smaller value contracts, under the WTO-GPA thresholds and the category of defence are beyond the scope of the paper. Social implications The paper focusses on the underserved topic of social sustainability in business-to-government (B2G) – business to government – supply chains arguing that for responsible business conduct to become a competitive advantage, it must be more meaningfully rewarded on the demand-side of all taxpayer-funded contracts in organisation for economic co-operation and development countries. The paper introduces the idea of priceless procurement as a mechanism to build system capacity in the evaluation of non-financial sustainability objectives. Originality/value To build the capacity to stimulate competition based on social and environmental policy objectives, the paper introduces the concept of priceless procurement in B2G contracts.

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Section: The Un Sdgs and Public Procurement In The Twenty-first Centurymentioning

confidence: 99%

Public procurement – price-taker or market-shaper?

Hamilton

2022

CPOIB

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“…In terms of its main characteristics, the service is performed at the client's premises; the allocated workforce has an employment contract associated with a workplace and not with an enterprise (Bondy 2018;Eurofund 2014). The workplace may be occasional, in which workers belong to different service teams, or it may be habitual, resulting in a fixed workplace at the customer's premises (Larsen et al 2019). The complexity of the cleaning service provided varies, ranging from domestic households to hospital surgical blocks (EFCI-European Cleaning and Facility Services Industry 2020; Marconato et al 2017).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, there is no professional recognition of this sector's workers or their tasks' importance (Brugière 2017). The majority earn minimum wage, and the working hours are generally outside the company's business hours, which implies working at night and/or early morning, as well as maintaining services, even at minimal levels, on festive dates and holidays (Eurofund 2014;Larsen et al 2019).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cleaning in Times of Pandemic: Perceptions of COVID-19 Risks among Workers in Facility Services

et al. 2022

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Cleaning services are a transversal activity that guarantees the proper functioning and conditions of safety, hygiene, and health across all economic sectors. The COVID-19 pandemic increased the need for clean, sanitary spaces, particularly in health services and other areas with a large number of people. The workers in these services were often placed on the frontline without any specific training or information. Their low average schooling aggravated this situation. Therefore, exploring these workers’ perceptions about the COVID-19 pandemic and its potential influence on their mental health was the primary goal of our research. Structured interviews were conducted based on questionnaires in a sample of 436 women. Their characterisation focused on three aspects related to the pandemic. First, to prevent infecting others (85.5%) and that people close to them could die (86.0%) were the dominant concerns; second, the feeling of permanent vigilance was mentioned (56.2%); and third, the fear of not getting medical care (60.7%). Thus, the workers felt there was a need for more dissemination of individual protection measures, as well as more training, better general working conditions, and access to psychological counselling.

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The dynamics shaping experiences and prospects of employer coordination in a Liberal Market Economy: The case of Scotland

Simms

2023

Economic and Industrial Democracy

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Without structures of employer coordination, it is difficult to develop and deliver effective and legitimate labour market policy. This article theorises the conditions under which employer coordination occurs in a context usually described as a Liberal Market Economy. An explanatory framework of employer coordination is developed arguing that there are structural, institutional and ideational factors that facilitate and hinder coordination. The framework is applied to an empirical analysis of the Scottish context where devolution means that the Scottish Government has taken a different approach to issues of regulating work, emphasising the policy importance of ‘fair work’. Empirical material was collected through interviews with employers’ organisations (EOs) and other key stakeholders. The article extends existing theorisation by demonstrating that the pressures that facilitate and hinder employer coordination are dynamic and contested.

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Good intentions meet harsh realities: Social dialogue and precarious work in industrial cleaning

Cited by 4 publications

References 31 publications

Public procurement – price-taker or market-shaper?

Public procurement – price-taker or market-shaper?

Cleaning in Times of Pandemic: Perceptions of COVID-19 Risks among Workers in Facility Services

The dynamics shaping experiences and prospects of employer coordination in a Liberal Market Economy: The case of Scotland

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