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Labour Clauses (Public Contracts) Convention, 1949 (No. 94) - Cyprus (RATIFICATION: 1960)

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Articles 2, 4 and 5 of the Convention. Contractual provisions. Inspections and sanctions. Application of the Convention in practice. The Government reports that the Model Rules of 21 September 1977, which give full effect to the Convention, remain in force and no legislative changes have been made since 2016 in relation to the provisions governing labour clauses in public contracts. It indicates that, in compliance with the Safety and Health at Work (Minimum Requirements at Temporary or Mobile Construction Sites), specific terms on the protection of safety, health and well-being of workers are included in public contracts for “The Construction of Public Civil Engineering Projects”. These terms establish the obligation of the Contractor “to take all measures for the safety and health of his/her employees, the employees of the Subcontractors and any other person that might be affected by the execution of works”. Special references are made, inter alia, to the Contractor’s obligation to draw up a safety and health plan and to appoint a Coordinator for safety and health matters during the project execution stage. The Committee notes that the contracts are drawn up by the Treasury of the Republic of Cyprus and used by all governmental departments. Furthermore, the Contractor is required to sign a Certificate of Employee Protection, as part of the submitted tender documents. The Committee also notes that the Department of Labour Inspection has requested the competent governmental authorities to include in their tender documents certain provisions of the European Regulations (No. 1272/2008 and No. 1907/2006) relating to chemical substances. It further notes that the Department of Labour Relations has examined 486 public contracts, from 2016 to 2020. This process has involved 1,294 contractors and subcontractors, to determine whether or not they are in compliance with the provisions of the Public Contracts they have signed. The Committee invites the Government to continue to provide updated information on the practical application of the Convention, including information on legislative changes, which may have a possible impact on the application of the Convention, as well as statistical information relating to the system of inspection and sanctions, including the number and type of violations detected and sanctions applied.

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Articles 2, 4 and 5 of the Convention. Contractual provisions. Inspections and sanctions. Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Model Rules of 21 September 1977, which give full effect to the provisions of the Convention, remain in force. The Government adds that there have been no legislative changes during the reporting period that have had any impact on their application. The Government indicates that measures were introduced in 2012 aimed at ensuring the effective enforcement of the obligations of the main contractor and subcontractors under the provisions of the relevant sectoral collective agreement. These measures include the requirement that, in the event that the main contractor or subcontractors must hire staff for the work to be undertaken under the public procurement contract, hiring must be done through the Labour Office and staff must be drawn from the official lists of unemployed persons. A reporting system has also been introduced according to which the main contractor is required to keep and update weekly records of workers it or its subcontractors employ. Records are to be provided to the project engineer designated by the authorizing public authority, who is required to send the data on a monthly basis to the Department of Labour, the Department of Labour Relations and the Social Insurance Service. In addition, before the project engineer may sign off on the work performed by a subcontractor, the latter is required to provide a certificate confirming payment of all social security contributions. In the event that the main contractor fails to provide the required records to the project engineer, the project coordinator is entitled to withhold up to 20 per cent of the salaries of the employees for whom records have not been provided. The Committee notes that, in 2015, 3,000 employers carrying out public procurement projects were inspected and 100 cases of violations of contract were found by the Department of Labour Relations. These led to deductions from the payments made by the Government to main contractors under the respective public procurement contracts totalling approximately €400,000 for 2015. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, under the 2012 measures, contractors and subcontractors are excluded from undertaking public works if, within the preceding three years, they have been convicted for non-compliance with the minimum wage order or for having employed illegal workers or persons who are not registered in the social security system. The Government notes that fines for the employment of illegal workers were increased from €100 per worker per day to €500 per worker per day. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing up-to-date information on legislative changes, as well as information, including statistical information, relating to the system of inspection and sanctions, including the number and nature of the violations detected and the sanctions applied.

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Article 2 of the Convention. Insertion of labour clauses in public contracts. Further to its previous comment, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Model Rules of 21 September 1977, which give full effect to the requirements of the Convention, remain in force irrespective of recent reforms in its public procurement legislation, i.e., the adoption of the new law on the award of public contracts (supplies, works and services) in 2003, the issuance of regulations under section 65 of that law in April 2004, and the adoption of the law on the coordination of procedures for the award of public contracts (supplies, works and services) repealing the above instruments in 2006. The Committee requests the Government to keep the Office informed of any legislative changes which may have a possible impact on the application of the Convention.

Articles 4 and 5 and Part V of the report form. System of inspection and sanctions. Practical application. The Committee notes with interest the information provided by the Government concerning the establishment by the Department of Labour Relations and the Department of Labour and Social Insurance Services of a special task force of inspectors for ensuring that collective agreements are applied effectively by main contractors and subcontractors undertaking public procurement work. It also notes the statistical information, according to which in 2010, this joint task force carried out 26 nationwide inspections specifically geared towards public procurement projects; in six cases, the main contractor was found to be in violation of the relevant sectoral collective agreement, while in 12 cases both the main contractor and the subcontractors were found in contravention of the applicable collective agreement. The inspection results show that the main infringements relate to the non-payment of social insurance contributions and the payment of wages at a lower rate than that provided for by the collective agreement. As regards sanctions, the Committee notes the Government’s indications that apart from deducting unpaid wages from payments owed to the contractor, public authorities have the right to deduct a fine of 10 per cent of any unpaid sums to social insurance funds for every day the contractor fails to settle the dues owed to these funds. The Committee would appreciate if the Government would continue providing up to date information on the system of inspection and sanctions, or other enforcement measures, for ensuring compliance with the terms of labour clauses in public contracts.

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The Committee notes the Government’s statement that there has been no change in the implementing legislation during the reporting period. The Committee understands, however, that a new law on the award of public contracts (supplies, works and services) was adopted in 2003 and that regulations under section 65 of that law were issued in April 2004, while another law on the coordination of procedures for the award of public contracts (supplies, works and services) repealing the above instruments was adopted in 2006. The Committee requests the Government to specify whether the Model Rules of 21 September 1977, which were embodied in public contracts and gave effect to the Convention, are still in force, or whether the recent reforms in public procurement legislation have affected the application of the Convention in either law or practice.

Moreover, the Committee notes that the Government has not provided any information of a practical nature concerning the application of the Convention since 1973. It therefore asks the Government to supply, in accordance with Part V of the report form up to date statistical information relating to the number of contracts and workers covered by the relevant legislation, inspection results showing the number and nature of the contraventions reported, extracts from official reports or studies addressing issues connected with the social dimensions of public procurement, as well as any other particulars which would enable the Committee to gain a full appreciation of the means by which and the extent to which the Convention is applied.