LABOUR | Administrative Court confirms strict requirements for equivalence between national collective bargaining agreements in public tenders

On 6 October 2025, the Tribunale Amministrativo Regionale per la Toscana issued judgment No. 1584, rejecting the appeal brought by Cooperativa Sociale Gialla and confirming the lawfulness of the decision by the Municipality of Pitigliano to annul the award of a four-year public service contract for the management of a nursery school. The dispute concerned the equivalence of contractual protections under Article 11.2 of Legislative Decree No. 36 of 31 March 2023, specifically regarding the use of a different NCBA than the one indicated in the tender. The Court stressed that the burden of proving full equivalence of the different NCBA through the introduction of additional protections lies entirely with the tenderer and must be demonstrated in a precise, analytical and verifiable manner, not through generic statements. As the tenderer failed to provide adequate proof, the award’s annulment was upheld. The ruling confirms a strict approach to the equivalence test in public procurement, reinforcing the central role of workers’ protection in accessing and executing public contracts.

Newsletter n. 111 – October 2025