Works Council
According to the Works Constitution Act, employees have the right to vote a works
council to represent their interests and rights towards their employer.
Trade Unions and Representatives | HEUSER RECHT UND STEUERN
Works
Council
According to the Works
Constitution Act, employees
have the right to vote a works
council to represent their
interests and rights towards
their employer.
Employer obligations
It is an obligation for employers to
support works councils and allow the
elected members to exercise their
related activities during their working
hours – meaning that employers actually
pay – albeit indirectly - for the council’s
Employer obligations
It is an obligation for employers to support works councils and allow the elected
members to exercise their related activities during their working hours –
meaning that employers actually pay – albeit indirectly - for the council’s
activities. An employee must not be treated in a less favourable way because
of his/her membership.
If the employees wish to form a works council, employers must provide general
information on work councils and data on eligibility and voter eligibility of
employees. The provision of suitable premises (e.g. for elections) also lies with
the employer. Moreover, the works council has the right to demand for financial
resources to buy equipment or to undergo special trainings for councils’
members.
Members
A company must have at least 5 employees with voters’ eligibility, of which 3
are also eligible. Beyond that, the number of members of a works council
increases dependent on the number of the company’s employees. Please find
an overview below.
06 • www.heuser.de
activities. An employee must not be
treated in a less favourable way because
of his/her membership.
If the employees wish to form a works
council, employers must provide general
information on work councils and data
on eligibility and voter eligibility of
employees. The provision of suitable
premises (e.g. for elections) also lies
with the employer. Moreover, the works
council has the right to demand for
financial resources to buy equipment or
to undergo special trainings for council
members.
Members
A company must have at least 5
employees with voters’ eligibility, of
which 3 are also eligible. Beyond that, the
number of members of a works council
increases dependent on the number of
the company’s employees. Please find
an overview below.
Number of employees
In companies with more than 9,000
employees the number of members
increases by 2 for every started counting
unit of 3,000.
Page 6 of 8
5
to
20
21
to
50
51
to
100
101
to
200
201
to
400
401
to
700
701
to
1,000
1,001
to
1,500
1,501
to
2,000
2,001
to
2,500
2,501
to
3000
3,001
to
3,500
3,501
to
4,000
4,001
to
4500
4,501
to
5,000
5,001
to
6,000
6,001
to
7,000
7,001
to
9,000
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35
Mandatory members of Works Council
In companies with more than 9,000 employees the number of members
increases by 2 for every started counting unit of 3,000.