2020 Highlights

Our projects

Collaboration between the parties for the protection of employment and measures to combat covid-19

The Joint Committee, set up by virtue of the Protocol on Water Tender Contracts between Acea SpA, Acea Ato 2, the Trade Unions and the Trade Federations, in recent years, by means of collaborative discussions, facilitated the transparency of information and reduced the number of critical issues regarding the safety and organisation of the work of contractor Company personnel. In an agreement with the Parties, Acea also confirmed its commitment to promote the employment protection of workers, combating forms of undocumented work or labour that does not comply with the applicable collective bargaining agreements. From 2019, in fact, the Labour-Management Relations Unit contributed to the drafting and application of the social clause, to safeguard employment levels in the event of a change of contract, for both water contracts and those for the electrical and water contact centre, guaranteeing the transfer of staff from the outgoing companies to the incoming companies, without repercussions in terms of employment.
The signing of the Protocol, shared for the regulation of Covid-19 containment and prevention measures in Water Tender Contracts, on 19 June 2020 was particularly important. The Parties constituted an "Advisory Committee for the analysis and proposal of improvement actions for safety in construction sites" pursuant to the provisions of the “shared protocol for the regulation of measures for the prevention and containment of the spread of the Covid-19 virus in workplaces”.
The Committee was composed of the Head of the Acea Ato 2 Procedure, the Head of Labour-Management Relations of the Acea Group, Employers of the Contracting Companies and their Representatives and RSPP, Territorial RLS and RLS and RSA of the Companies and by a representative from the territorial Trade Union Organisations Feneal-UIL, Filca-CISL, Fillea-CGIL.
The duration of the Protocol depends on the permanency of the risk of contagion from Covid-19 defined by the Authorities and the Relevant Bodies. Pursuant to the provision contained herein, the Committee carried out systematic meetings on a weekly basis throughout 2020. The meetings will continue also in the future, when necessary, and at least monthly.

AdF’s Circular Economy Protocol received a special mention at Compraverde 2020

The Company AdF, that operates in the management of SII in OTA 6 Ombrone, in Tuscany (in particular in the provinces of Grosseto and Siena), created, with the objective to support development in the area of reference and increase the sustainable performance of said area, the Circular Economy Protocol, entrusting part of the goods, services and works, not subject to Procurement Code provisions, to less local economic operators. To that end, AdF implemented a Qualification System suitably dedicated to the “non core business” contracts, creating an “ad hoc Register”, available online from November, and accessible only to local businesses.
The companies interested in enrolling should meet the requirements of quality, price and reliability, and also share the same ethic on innovating procedures and committing to reducing environmental and social risks and impact, and committing to a transparent and responsible work relationship. In the assessment of services, social and environmental responsibility will also be considered and the suppliers will be subject to assessment on these aspects. To enrol on the register, in addition to stating that you are compliant with the corporate principles of the Code of Ethics and the MOG 231/2001, there are also "incentivising criteria", such as, for example, the hiring of personnel belonging to “protected categories” as well as regulatory provisions, good safety practices on work sites, as well as regulatory compliance, vehicles with low environmental impact, etc. The number of incentivising criteria included, as specified in the Circular Economy Regulations adopted by AdF, and which can be viewed at www.fiora.it, is relative to the bracket required.
The supply procedure will continue to be based on principles of free competition, equal treatment, non-discrimination, transparency, economy, correctness, health and safety, inclusion and diversity and social security compliance. In that view, AdF has focussed attention also on the issue of financial support to its suppliers, who may have difficulty finding resources, by signing two Agreements with local credit institutions, to offer low-interest financial facilities to companies that enrol in the AdF registers on circular economy.
The initiative was well received and, though the ad hoc Register was only online from November, 29 suppliers had already enrolled by 31.12.2020. The Protocol is the result of activities of sharing and comparison between AdF and its stakeholders, including the institutions and local actors, such as Tuscany Region and local bodies, AIT, ARERA, Trade Unions, Trade Union Organisations, the University of Siena and the University Hub of Grosseto, local Credit Institutions and Associations, that participated in the preparation of the document, providing methods that were fundamental in obtaining the final version.
The Protocol, the first initiative of its type in the water sector Italy, received – on 9 October 2020 – significant recognition at the national level, by the Compraverde Buygreen Forum 2020, dedicated to public and private Green Procurement politics, projects, goods and services, for a fairer and more sustainable economy, receiving a special mention at the Compraverde awards, in the "Vendor Rating and Sustainable Purchases" section of the large enterprises category, for its "great care dedicated to the territory, demonstrated through the creation of a dedicated register for local sustainable suppliers".