Scientific paper
Socially responsible public procurement by the city and districts of Berlin: protecting workers in global supply chains
Gale Raj-Reichert, Helena Gräf
2020
#Social and working conditions
Workers in factories of global supply chains in the global South producing goods governments purchase often face poor working conditions. A governance tool to improve the situation is socially responsible public procurement. We assess this potential vis-à-vis the newly revised public procurement law in Berlin. While challenges include limited knowledge, resources and fragmented purchasing, there are opportunities for ensuring social criteria in procurement contracts of goods at risk of violating international labour standards and for fair trade, and through pooled procurement.