"Modern Slavery: Do the 2014 EU Procurement Directives Establish New Routes to Remedy for Victims?", 19 June 2018

In this post, Eamonn Conlon considers whether the 2014 EU Procurement Directives provide a basis for liability of public buyers or their suppliers for severe labour rights abuses experienced by workers, including modern slavery, using a construction case study. While the post examines Irish implementing legislation in particular, much of the analysis is of broader application across EU member states.

...[P]rocurement law is one potential basis on which victims could seek legal remedies against government buyers and their suppliers. Public procurers and their private suppliers should urgently consider whether their policies and due diligence machinery are adequate to address emerging liabilities associated with their procurement activity.