Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 7th May 2026 Issue no. 1209

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Services union stages European Public Procurement Summit this month

As the EU prepares to reform its public procurement directives, Uni-Europa – the trade union that fights for a dignified life for services workers across Europe, has decided to get involved.

Arguing that this is the moment to establish sound strategic and social objectives at the core of public procurement, it is staging the European Public Procurement Summit, on 14th April.

“Every year, more than €2 trillion in EU public spending flows to private contractors,” says Uni-Europa. “Yet procurement decisions are still overwhelmingly driven by lowest price - fuelling a race to the bottom in wages and working conditions across sectors and undermining the European social model.”

The union says that the Procurement Summit will bring together the voices that matter - essential workers, responsible employers, policymakers and civil society - to make the definitive case for collective bargaining as the cornerstone of socially responsible public procurement in Europe.

The high-level, half-day conference will feature an opening keynote, four panel discussions, audience Q&A, and a networking lunch. It will bring together senior decisionmakers and influencers shaping EU procurement policy: European Commission officials, MEPs and advisors in EMPL (European Parliament Committee on Employment & Social Affairs) and IMCO (European Parliament Committee on Internal Market & Consumer Protection committees, Member State representatives in EPSCO (Employment, Social Policy, Health & Consumer Affairs Council) and the Working Party on Competitiveness & Growth, employers' associations, contracting authorities, trade union leaders, civil society organisations, researchers and specialised journalists.

A range of stakeholders will feature, including:

* Trade unions: Esther Lynch, general secretary, ETUC (European Trade Union Confederation), Oliver Roethig, regional secretary, Uni-Europa, and Enrico Somaglia, general secretary, EFFAT (European Federation of Food, Agriculture & Tourism Trade Unions, also representing domestic workers)
* Employers: Eduardo Cobas, second vice chairman CoESS (Confederation of European Security Services), Grainne Kelly, European people leader, Securitas Services Europe, Hilde Engels, chief executive officer, UGBN/ABSU (Belgian cleaning sector employer organisation), Diego Dutto, national director of LEGACOOPSOCIALI (Italian Association of Social Cooperatives), and Alexander Franck, deputy director general CoESS
* Policymakers: Pierre Jouvet, MEP Socialists & Democrats and Rapporteur, representatives of local and national contracting authorities
* Civil society: Diego Dutto, European Economic and Social Committee, Simona Brunnerová, CELSI (European Confederation of Independent Trade Unions)

Closing remarks will be made by László Andor, former EU Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs & Inclusion, during the period of the last revision of EU procurement rules

The summit is taking place at The Hoxton, Sq. Victoria Régina 1, 1210 Brussels.

Register at:

https://uniglobalunion.org/meetings/european-procurement-summit-14-april-2026-brussels/

9th April 2026