The European Construction Industry Federation will pressurise members to improve ethics and environmental management under sustainability guidance to be published this June.

The guidance, which covers issues of corporate social responsibility, is set to be formally adopted by FIEC member federations, including the UK’s Construction Confederation, at the organisation’s centenary congress. Bodies that sign up to the deal will pledge to improve practice across 10 key areas, including business transparency and environmental targets.

The guidance has been specifically designed to aid members from new European Union states and will include measures to improve community relations. There will also be a focus on training and the use of reporting mechanisms to identify progress against targets, such diversity in the workforce and carbon emissions.

John Goodall, of FIEC’s technical commission, said that the move aimed to improve the image of the sector across Europe and to assist members to implement sustainability drives. He said: “The document will help any body that wishes to promote a sustainable way of working, but will be of particular use to the weaker federations’ members.”

Goodall added that the document was particularly aimed at assisting small and medium-sized enterprises to implement sustainable methods.