SELECTING BEST VALUE
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A GUIDE FOR PRIVATE AND PUBLIC ORGANISATIONS AWARDING CONTRACTS FOR CLEANING SERVICES
The guide is developed by the European Federation of Cleaning Industries (EFCI) and UNI Europa with the financial support of the European Commission and aims to assist buyers in their tendering process by highlighting the benefits of choosing quality services. As it has been co-drafted by the European social partners in the cleaning services industry, it offers a unique approach to selecting best value re ecting the experience of the cleaning sector. For the same reason, this guide suggests that the cleaning services industry should be seen as a partner in the process of procuring services. With this guide, social partners aim to help readers in understanding how to include and measure quality and social aspects in their procurement process. Whereas quality of cleaning services is determined by technical merit and professional ability, social aspects include the respect for collective agreements and good employment conditions. Both the quality and social aspects represent two sides of the same coin. If these are not taken into account, unfair competition between companies and social dumping of employees is likely to be the rule. Cleaning is a highly labour-intensive service where labour accounts for around 85% of costs. As a consequence, the social partners strongly underline that awarding contracts purely on price or cost will lead automatically to quality shortcomings and unlawful practices. |
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