Only around a sixth of employees in Germany are union members, although the decline in union density has slowed in recent years. The vast majority of union members are in the main union confederation, the DGB, but within it individual unions, like IG Metall and Ver.di, have considerable autonomy and influence.

Figures from the unions indicate that there are some 7.7 million trade union members in Germany. There are no official estimates of union density, but with almost 40 million employees in Germany in 2017, this implies a density figure of 19.3%.[1] However, the union figures include a substantial number of retired trade union members, estimated at 21.6% of total membership in the largest confederation, the DGB, in 2009.[2] Applying this proportion to total union membership produces a density figure based on employed union members of 15.1%. However, this may be an underestimate, and the OECD figure for union density is 17.0% in 2016.[3]

The main trade union confederation in Germany is the DGB, which aims to recruit all types of worker. It is by far the largest confederation and the eight unions affiliated to it have 5,974,950 members (2018).[4]

DGB unions face significant competition from non-DGB unions in the public sector and former public sectors, where another confederation, the dbb, has 1,317,729 members (2018).[5] There is also a smaller Christian confederation, the CGB, which states it has 280,000 members.[6]

As well as the union confederations, there are autonomous unions for specific occupations, of which the most important are those for hospital doctors (Marburger Bund), flight attendants (UFO), airline pilots (Cockpit), and air traffic controllers (GdF). Some have significant membership. The Marburger Bund states that it has “more than 120,000 members”,[7] UFO is estimated to have around 15,000,[8] Cockpit 9,600[9] and the GdF 4,500. (The locomotive drivers’ union GDL, which is often included with these unions, is in fact an affiliate of the dbb.)

Historically DGB unions were organised primarily on an industrial basis, with unions for metal workers, chemical workers, employees in the public sector, finance and retail and so on. The structure set up when the DGB was created in 1949 remained largely unchanged for many years. However, from the start of the 1990s there were a number of major mergers, which fundamentally changed the picture.

There are now two very large unions, IG Metall and Ver.di, of similar size, and all the other unions, with the exception of the chemical and energy union, IG BCE, are much smaller.

IG Metall is the largest, with 2,270,595 members (end 2018).[10] Although the vast majority of its members are still in the metalworking sector, it merged with the textile union in 1997 and the wood and plastics union in 1999. It also has members in the information and communications sector.

Ver.di was created in 2001 from a merger of five unions, covering transport and a range of public services, retail and finance, post and telecommunications, the graphical and media sector and a non-manual confederation, the DAG, which had previously been outside the DGB. For a period after the merger it was the largest union in the DGB but, following membership losses, it is now in second place with 1,969,043 members (end 2018). Ver.di seeks to organise service workers in both the private and public sector.

The third largest, with 632,389 members (end 2018), is IGBCE, which covers chemical and energy workers, whose unions merged, together with a small union for leatherworking, in 1997.

The five other DGB affiliates are all much smaller. They are the education and science union GEW (279,389 members), the construction and agriculture union IG BAU (247,181 members), the food and hospitality union NGG (198,026 members), the police union GdP (190,931 members) and transport and rail workers’ union EVG (187,396 members)

These individual unions, particularly the larger ones, are very powerful, and certainly have greater resources than the DGB itself. (The only actual members of the DGB are the eight unions that belong to it.) The mergers also shifted the balance of power towards the individual unions, as the three largest account for 82% of total DGB membership.

The dbb is made up of 42 unions each covering a specific area of the public sector or former public sector, such as teachers in vocational colleges or those working in prisons. The four largest unions in the dbb are the teachers’ union VBE, with 164,000 members,[11] another teachers’ union DPhV, for some secondary school and university staff, which has 90,000 members,[12] komba, a union for administrative staff in local government, also with around 90,000 members[13] and the DSTG, which represents tax officials and has around 70,000 members.[14]

More than two-thirds (70%) of the members of dbb unions are employees in public services with a special status (Beamte), whose pay and conditions are set by law and not negotiated.[15] But it also organises workers with normal employee rights. One of the most industrially powerful of the dbb unions is the union for locomotive drivers, the GDL, which has been involved in several industrial disputes. At the end of 2010, the other dbb affiliate in the railway industry, the GDBA, merged with a DGB affiliate, Transet, to form the EVG, which became an affiliate of the DGB. This was the first time such a cross-confederation merger had occurred.

The Christian CGB consists of 14 separate unions of which the most important is the metalworkers’ union CGM. However, the courts have ruled in a series of cases that these unions do not have the capacity (in terms of membership or organisation) to conclude collective agreements (see section on collective bargaining).

Politically the DGB emphasises its formal neutrality and ensures that at least one member of its national executive is a member of the Christian democratic CDU.[16] There are also some CDU members in leading positions in individual unions. However, traditionally, the overall position of the unions and that of most union officials is closer to the social democratic SPD, although there are also some important figures who support the Greens, and middle-ranking union officials played a role in the creation of the left-wing Linkspartei.

The constitution of the dbb also states that it is independent in both party political and confessional terms. It is sometimes seen as more conservative than the DGB, although, it represents a range of views and includes senior SPD figures in its leadership.[17]The CGB in contrast, states that it is guided by Christian social teaching, which it considers can only be achieved through separate union organisation.

Overall union membership has fallen sharply since German unification in 1990. The DGB has been most severely affected losing half of its membership since its peak in 1991 when it had 11.8 million members. This is despite absorbing a previously separate union grouping for non-manual workers (the DAG with 460,000 members) through the creation of Ver.di in 2001. (Union membership in the former East Germany, which initially was high, fell very sharply as overall employment there declined.) In the last few years membership has stabilised, with an overall fall of only 3.5% between 2010, when it was 6,193,252, and 2018, when it was 5,974,950. Three unions slightly over the same period, including the largest, IG Metall, but this growth was more than offset by falls elsewhere.[18] DGB unions have in recent years expressed growing concern membership losses and have taken a range of initiatives to combat them.[19]

The dbb’s figures show its membership growing by 3.2% in the period from 2010 to 2018, from 1,276,330 to 1,317,729.[20] Membership of the Marburger Bund (doctors) has also rise over the last eight years, although precise figures are not published.

Trade union membership is strongest among manual workers in manufacturing and in the public services, but much weaker among workers in the private services sector.

Women are also under-represented in unions, accounting for only a third of union members in both the DGB (33.7%) and the dbb (32.4%) in 2018, despite the fact that women make up almost half (47.9%) of those in dependent employment (although only 35.0% of those working full time.[21]

[1] There were 39,983,000 employees in Germany in 2017 according to the Federal Statistics Office.

[2] Gewerkschaften als Interessenvertreter der älteren Generation? by Wolfgang Schroeder and Bettina Munimus in WSI Mitteilungen 3/2011

[3] OECDStat https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=TUD (Accessed 06.03.2019)

[4] DGB-Mitgliederzahlen ab 2010, http://www.dgb.de/uber-uns/dgb-heute/mitgliederzahlen/2010/?tab=tab_0_0#tabnav (Accessed 06.03.2019)

[5] Zahlen Daten Fakten: 2019, dbb beamtenbund und tarifunion, January 2019 (page 66) https://www.dbb.de/fileadmin/pdfs/2019/zdf_2019.pdf (Accessed 06.03.2019)

[6] http://www.cgb.info/aktuell/aktuelles.html (Accessed 06.03.2019)

[7] https://www.marburger-bund.de/ (Accessed 06.03.2019)

[8] See http://www.spiegel.de/plus/ufo-dubiose-finanzen-bei-der-unabhaengigen-flugbegleiter-organisation-a-00000000-0002-0001-0000-000161216153 (Accessed 06.03.2019

[9] https://www.vcockpit.de/die-vc/verband/allgemein.html (Accessed 06.03.2019)

[10] All figures for individual DGB unions from the DGB – DGB-Mitgliederzahlen ab 2010, http://www.dgb.de/uber-uns/dgb-heute/mitgliederzahlen/2010/?tab=tab_0_0#tabnav (Accessed 06.03.2019)

[11] https://www.vbe.de/der-vbe/ (Accessed 06.03.2019)

[12] https://www.dphv.de/organisation/portrait.html

[13] http://www.komba.de/orgastruktur-komba-bund/ueber-uns-bund.html (Accessed 06.03.2019)

[14] http://www.dstg.de/ueberuns.html (Accessed 06.03.2019)

[15] The fact that Beamte do not have the right to strike was confirmed in a ruling by the German Constitutional Court on 12 June 2018, see Streikverbot für Beamte verfassungsgemäß https://www.bundesverfassungsgericht.de/SharedDocs/Pressemitteilungen/DE/2018/bvg18-046.html

[16] Currently (2019) it is Elke Hannack, who is deputy president of the CDA, the employee wing of the CDU, and who has been deputy president of the DGB since June 2013

[17] For example, Kirsten Lühmann, an SPD member of the Bundestag (GermanParliament) since 2009, is the dbb’s dputy president (2019).

[18] http://www.dgb.de/uber-uns/dgb-heute/mitgliederzahlen

[19] See Gewerkschaften 2030: Rekrutierungsdefizite, Repräsentationslücken und neue Strategien der Mitgliederpolitik, by Anke Hassel and Wolfgang Schroeder, WSI Report, Nr. 44, 2018, 2018

[20] Zahlen Daten Fakten: 2014, dbb beamtenbund und tarifunion, January 2014

[21] Abhängig Erwerbstätige Deutschland, 2017 Statistisches Bundesamt Deutschland

Collective bargaining at industry level between individual trade unions and employers' organisations is still the most important mechanisms for setting pay and conditions in Germany. However, the system is under pressure as employers leave or never join employers’ organisations, and the agreements themselves provide for greater flexibility at company level.

The framework

There is no bargaining at national level covering the whole of the economy in Germany and the main union confederation, the DGB, does not generally have a mandate to negotiate. (One exception was in 2003, when the DGB negotiated an agreement on agency staff on behalf of the individual unions. This has subsequently been renewed on a number of occasions, and it has also been supplemented by separate industry-level agreements signed by the individual unions.)

Instead it is collective bargaining at industry level between individual trade unions and employers' organisations that remains the central arena for setting pay and conditions in Germany. Separate agreements between trade unions and specific companies are less common, although there are some exceptions (such as the agreement covering the motor company Volkswagen), and they are found more frequently in the former East Germany (see below).

Figures from the government-backed Institute of Employment Research (IAB) show that, in 2018, almost half (46%) of employees in Germany were covered by industry-level collective agreements, with another 8% covered by agreements signed at company level – meaning overall collective bargaining coverage was 54%. This left 46% of employees whose terms and conditions were not set by collective bargaining, although the managers who completed the survey, on which the figures are based, said that the terms and conditions for half (51%) the employees not covered were oriented on industry-level agreements. It is also noticeable that the proportion of employees covered by collective bargaining is 11 percentage points higher in West than in East Germany (see table).[1]

Proportion of employees covered by collective agreements: 2018

Level of bargaining	Germany	West Germany	East Germany
Industry	46%	56%	45%
Company	8%
Not covered	46%	44%	55%
* of which oriented on industry-level	51%	52%	44%
Total	100%	100%	!00%

Source: IAB-Betriebspanel 2018, Tabelle 1: Beschäftigte nach Tarifbindung ihres Betriebes

The IAB figures also provide details on the proportion of workplaces, as well as the proportion of employees, covered by collective agreements. These show that 25% of workplaces are covered by industry-level agreements and 2% covered by company agreements. These figures are lower than those for employees, because larger workplaces are more likely to be covered by collective bargaining than smaller ones. In West Germany, only 22% of workplaces with up to nine employees are covered by a collective agreement, either at industry or at company level, compared with 80% of workplaces with 500 or more employees. The parallel figures for in East Germany are 13% (up to nine employees) and 76% (500 and over).

One other difference is that company-level agreements are more common in the East than in the West. Overall 3% of workplaces in East German have company agreements compared with 2% in West Germany.

A separate study by the official statistics office (Statistisches Bundesamt) used the results of the 2014 structure of earnings survey to calculate the degree to which employees are bound by collective agreements. It produced findings which were similar to the IAB figures, although generally lower. It found that, in 2014, 46% of employees and 15% of workplaces were bound by collective agreements. As with the IAB figures, they show that industry-level agreements, covering 41% of employees and 13% of workplaces, have by far the widest coverage.[2]

Both sets of figures indicate the wide variations between industries in the extent of bargaining coverage. Public administration has the highest proportion of employees covered by collective agreements (98% based on the IAB figures and 99% on the structure of earnings figures), while information and communication has the lowest (20% on both sets of figures). In manufacturing, a key area for German unions, collective bargaining coverage is between these two extremes, with 56% of manufacturing employees covered by collective bargaining on the IAB figures and 43% on the structure of earnings figures.

Industry agreements are typically negotiated at regional rather than national level. As a result there are slight variations between regions. However, the main elements of the agreements, in particular the size of the pay increase, will normally be the same across all regions. The main exception is the former East Germany where negotiated pay and/or conditions in some industries are still inferior to those in the former West Germany, although the gap has closed over time. The pay specialists at the Economic and Social Institute (WSI), which is close to the unions and regularly monitors developments, estimates that, at the end of 2017, the average level of negotiated rates in the East was 97.5% of those in the West. However, although there were some industries, like banking or printing where there was no difference, there were others where the difference was still substantial. One is example is provided by the agreements for hotels and restaurants, where the main rate in the agreement for Saxony (East) was only 77.7% of the equivalent rate in the agreement for Bavaria (West).[3]

This system, with collective bargaining primarily taking place at industry level rather than at the workplace, has traditionally been seen as one of the strengths of the German system. It has the potential to keep conflicts on pay and conditions at industry level, between the unions and the employers’ associations, while at workplace level, individual employers and workplace employee representatives – the works councils (see section on workplace representation) – can develop more cooperative relations.

Works councils are not legally able to negotiate collective agreements. They can, however, reach agreements with individual employers on issues not covered by collective agreements, and there are a whole range of topics such as employment security, the organisation of working time, rules on internet use or working from home, where works councils have reached agreements with local employers. These include some aspects linked to earning, such as bonus rates, performance-related pay and pay supplements, like long-service payments (see section on workplace representation).

Works councils are also able to negotiate over areas covered by collective agreements where the agreement itself contains a so-called “opening clause”, specifically allowing the works council to negotiate on the issue.

Opening clauses that allow the works council to negotiate arrangements which are less favourable than those set out in the industry-level agreement, to take account of the particular circumstances of their employer, are seen as important way of providing flexibility to the system. One well known example was the Pforzheimer accord signed by IG Metall in 2004, which was subsequently integrated into a more general collective agreement on job security. This permits the works council to agree reductions in hours and pay on a temporary basis in order to avoid redundancies.

Many pay agreements include opening clauses to allow works councils, often with the approval of the unions, to take account of the particular circumstances of their company. For example, the 2018 metal industry settlement, covering 3.5 million employees, allowed the a €400 cash payment due in 2019 to be delayed, reduced or completely eliminated in individual companies facing severe difficulties. And the 2018 settlement for the chemical industry allowed companies to omit a lump sum payment of €280 where they could show that they were facing particular economic difficulties

Figures from the IAB show that in 2011 23% of workplaces covered by collective agreements said that there were opening clauses in the agreements that applied to them. They were most common in manufacturing industry, where 35% of workplaces reported that their agreements included them. Where they were present, they were often used. Overall, 59% of workplaces, whose agreements included opening clauses on pay, said that they had used them, and 73% of workplaces with opening clauses on working time said that they had used the flexibility they provided.[4]

There are two legal mechanisms for extending the results of collective agreements beyond the signatory parties to all employers in an industry, although the rules for doing this have changed significantly in recent years, with the original extension mechanism being almost completely superseded.

The traditional mechanism for making existing collective agreements generally binding is subject to a number of conditions. These include that the agreement to be extended should cover at least 50% of employees in the industry and that both employers and the union should call for its extension beyond those directly covered. With levels of bargaining coverage dropping (see below), this mechanism has become less widely used. In summer 2019 the website of the labour ministry (BMAS) indicated that at that point only 443 (0.6%) of the approximately 73,000 registered collective agreements, which cover a wide range of issues other than pay, were currently generally binding ,[5] and that the list of generally binding agreements was being revised.

However, since the late 1990s legislation has been introduced which provides a different route to setting generally binding minimum rates for specific industries. One reason for this was to deal with the low wages often paid by non-German firms employing their own nationals in Germany (posted workers). This Posted Workers’ Act (Arbeitnehmer-Entsendegesetz) gives the labour minister the power to extend collective agreements which do not cover 50% of an industry’s workforce, and to set minimum rates in industries where there are no collective agreements if a specially appointed commission decides this is appropriate. Minimum rates had been set on the basis of collective agreements in nine industries, including construction, postal deliveries, cleaning, refuse collection, security and meat processing. In social care, they are set by the ministry on the basis of recommendations from a commission. The government also sets minimum rates for agency workers using other legislation. (This is in addition to the national minimum wage, which was introduced in January 2015 – see below.)

The German collective bargaining system has come under pressure as the coverage of industry-level agreements has fallen. The IAB figures show that the proportion of all employees in West Germany covered by industry-level agreements fell from 70% in 1996 to 49% in 2018. Looking at just the private sector, the percentage fell from 66% to 44%. In East Germany over the same period, the situation is considerably worse, down from 56% to 35% for all employees, and from 48% to 28% for those in the private sector.[6]

This downward trend is in part a result of employers leaving employers’ federations, or alternatively staying in them without being bound by the agreements they sign (so-called OT membership), as well as by the fact that new companies emerge and existing ones disappear. (New companies are less likely to be bound by industry-level agreements than existing ones.) The fall in coverage appears to have halted in East Germany, where it has remained broadly stable since 2012, but it has continued in West Germany, where overall bargaining coverage was 4 percentage points lower in 2018 than in 2012.[7]

Who negotiates and when?

Negotiations normally take place between the unions and the employers' federations. The agreements are legally binding in respect of trade union members (in practice normally for all employees) and the members of the employers' organisations who sign them.

There are no specific rules on union representativeness in Germany, unlike other countries, but in order to be a party to an agreement the union must have the capacity to negotiate (be “tariffähig”). As well as meeting more formal conditions such as having a constitution which allows them to negotiate, unions must also show that they can be effective and put the other side under pressure, as indicated by membership and organisational strength. In the past the courts have found that some of the unions in the Christian CGB do not have this capacity and that agreements they have signed are invalid. The best known example of this was the Christian union for agency workers, CGZP, which was found not to have the capacity to negotiate in December 2010.

Until fairly recently one of the basic principles of bargaining was that an employer could only be covered by one agreement. Only in a few exceptional cases, were specific occupational groups, such as doctors, pilots or locomotive drivers, with substantial bargaining power, able to negotiate separate agreements just for them. However, in a judgment in June 2010 the labour court ruled that while an individual could only be covered by one agreement, several agreements could coexist within the same company. Fearing that this could lead to a greater fragmentation of bargaining, the government introduced new legislation in 2015, which provided that where there was a conflict between competing unions, it would be the agreement signed with the larger union at the workplace that would be valid.

This legislation was challenged in the constitutional court by some of the non-DGB unions, who argued that it breached the right of freedom of association. The court ruled in 2017 that the legislation broadly complied with the constitution but needed some amendments. Changes were therefore introduced at the end of 2018, which provided some protection where the interests of the group represented by the minority union were not “seriously and effectively addressed”. However, it is not clear that this will be a final settlement, and this issue may again be taken to the constitutional court.

Agreements are signed throughout the year and those covering pay normally last for around one or sometimes two years or more. Agreements covering other issues have a longer life – perhaps five years or longer, while some go on until one side wishes to change them and gives the required period of notice.

The subject of the negotiations

German collective agreements regulate a wide range of issues. Apart from pay, agreements also deal with issues such as shiftwork payments or pay structures, working time, the treatment of part-timers and training.

Typically in any industry there will be an agreement dealing with pay and a framework agreement which deals with issues such as working time, appointment and dismissal, premium payments for night and shift work, holidays and sick pay. There may also be separate agreements on topics such as the treatment of older workers. All of these are likely to be present in several regional variants, although, as already stated, other than between East and West, the differences between them are likely to be small.

Following sustained pressure from the unions, Germany has had a minimum wage since 1 January 2015, although industry-level collective agreements paying less than the minimum wage continued to be valid until 1 January 2017.

A minimum wage commission, made up of representatives of the unions and employers, with external experts in an advisory capacity, makes proposals for increases in the rate, taking account of increases in collectively negotiated pay rates. These proposals are presented to the government which takes the final decision.

In 2017, some 1.4 million jobs were paid at the rate of the national minimum wage. In West Germany they accounted for around 3.0% of all jobs and in East Germany 6.0%.[8] The figures are expressed in jobs rather than employees, as many individuals being paid the national minimum wage work very few hours and may have several jobs.

[1] Tarifbindung und betriebliche Interessenvertretung: Ergebnisse aus dem IAB-Betriebspanel 2018, Tabelle 1 by Peter Ellguth and Susanne Kohaut, May 2019

[2] Tarifbindung 2014, Statistisches Bundesamt 2019

[3] Statistisches Taschenbuch Tarifpolitik: WSI-Tarifarchiv 2018, by Thorsten Schulten June 2018

[4] Entwicklung der Tarifbindung, Peter Ellguth, presentation to 9. Hans-Böckler-Forum zum Arbeits- und Sozial Recht, March 2013 http://www.boeckler.de/pdf/v_2013_03_21_ellguth.pdf

[5] https://www.bmas.de/DE/Themen/Arbeitsrecht/arbeitsrecht.html (Accessed 14.07.2019)

[6] Tarifbindung und betriebliche Interessenvertretung: Ergebnisse aus dem IAB-Betriebspanel 2018,Tabelle 4 by Peter Ellguth and Susanne Kohaut, May 2019

[7] Tarifbindung: Weiterhin deutliche Unterschiede zwischen Ost- und Westdeutschland by Susanne Kohaut, IAB-FORUM, May 2109 https://www.iab-forum.de/tarifbindung-weiterhin-deutliche-unterschiede-zwischen-ost-und-westdeutschland/ (Accessed 14.07.2019)

[8] Statistisches Bundesamt: Pressemitteilung Nr. 231 26. Juni 2018

note2 var obj = document.getElementById('note_hidden'); obj.value = obj.value + '2

2. Trendreport Betriebsratswahlen 20104: Zwischenbericht: Zwischenergebnisse kurz nach der Wahl,, by Ralph Greifenstein, Leo Kißler and Hendrik Lange, Hans-Böckler_-Stiftung, June August 2014 http://www.boeckler.de/pdf_fof/S-2014-695-2-1.pdf (Accessed 16.04.2015)12010

There is a clear legal basis in Germany for the workplace representation of employees in all but the very smallest companies. Under the Works Constitution Act (Betriebsverfassungsgesetz), a works council can be set up in all private sector workplaces with at least five employees. (There is a system of staff councils in the public sector which have a broadly similar structure.)

In practice large workplaces are much more likely to have works councils than small ones. Figures from the government-backed research body the IAB show that, in 2018, only 9% of all eligible workplaces had a works council in West Germany (10% in the East), but they covered 42% of all employees in the West and 35% in the East. Works councils covered 90% of employees in workplaces with more than 500 employees in West Germany, but only 8% of employees in workplaces with fewer than 50 workers. The comparable figures for East Germany were 86% (more than 500) and 10% (fewer than 50).[1] These figures are for works councils in the private sector. The proportions would be higher if staff councils in the public sector were also included.

Works councils are not directly trade union bodies. But the unions have a major influence on their operation. Analysis of the works council election results in 2014, on behalf of the Hans-Böckler-Foundation, found that around three-quarters of the members elected were members of unions in the DGB (the main union confederations), although there were variations between industries. In the energy and chemical industries (organised by the IGBCE), 80.0% were union members, and in the metal and textile industries (organised by IG Metall) the figure was 76.6%. However, the percentage of was lower, at 73.8%, in industries organised by the NGG food and hospitality union, and in services organised by Ver.di (61.0%).[2]

These figures are very similar to those for the works council election in 2010, although over a longer period the overall percentage of works council members who are in DGB unions has fallen slightly, dropping from 75.1% in 2002 to 72.7% in 2010.[3] Despite this, works councils remain an area of trade union dominance. (This is also the case for public sector staff councils, although here there are dbb members as well as those from the DGB.) Other links between unions and works councils are that works councils have the right to invite trade unions to attend their meetings, provided a quarter of the members are in favour, and works council members often go on union-organised training courses.

The law in Germany does not provide a separate statutory structure for union workplace representatives. However, some unions make provision for them. Their rights and duties are normally fixed by the unions, although in some industries their position is also regulated by collective agreements. In an ideal situation they exist alongside the works council. In practice there is often no separate specific trade union structure and the members of the works council will take over their tasks.

Figures from Eurofound’s 2013 European Company Survey show that 26% of establishments with at least 10 employees have some form of official employee representation, which may be a union body, a structure to represent employees’ social and economic interests, or an information and consultation body. This is slightly below the EU28 average of 32%. As elsewhere in Europe, larger organisations are much more likely to have such a structure than smaller ones. Among establishments with more than 250 employees, 77% have some form of employee representation.[4]

Numbers and structure

A works council can be set up once there are five permanent employees in a workplace, with the size increasing with the number of employees (see table). The employee numbers are based on headcount. There is no difference between part-time and full-time staff.

Number employed	Number of works council members
5-20	1
21-50	3
51-100	5
101-200	7
201-400	9
401-700	11
701-1,000	13
1,001-1,500	15

From 1,501 to 5,000 employees the number in the works council increases by two for every 500 employees or part thereof; from 5,001 to 7,000 by two for every additional 1,000. Workplaces with 7,001 to 9,000 have 35 members on the works council, and above 9,000 workplaces have two additional works council members for each additional 3,000 employees. Changes in 2001 increased the size of the works council at almost all levels.

All employees are covered by the works councils with the exception of senior management, for whom separate representation is provided, and the owners of the business and their close relatives. In Germany works councils are purely employee bodies. There are no members representing the employer. Manual and non-manual employees should “as far as possible” be represented in proportion to their numbers in the workforce. Since 2001, agency workers who have worked in the workplace for at least three months have been entitled to vote, and, in March 2013, the labour court ruled that they should be counted in the numbers employed. This potentially increases the size of the works council, as well as the numbers of those entitled to time-off (see below).

There is also a requirement that the sex which is in a minority in the workforce must be represented in proportion to its presence in the workforce on all works councils with three or more members. The aim of this change, which was introduced in 2001, was to increase the number of women in works councils and research on works council elections since then suggests that it is having some effect. The proportion of women has increased gradually, from 23% in 2002 to 32% in 2018.[5] However, the researchers estimate that women continue to be under-represented in relation to the number of women employees.

The works council chair, elected by the whole works council from amongst its members, plays a key role. His or her legal functions include calling the meetings and setting the agenda. The law also requires that in works councils with nine or more members (above 200 employees) a separate works committee should be elected from the works council to deal with day to day business. (The works council chair and deputy chair are automatically members of this committee.) If the works council wishes it can also set up other sub committees.

In companies with more than 100 permanent employees, the law requires the setting up of another body, the economic committee. This committee is consulted on economic and financial issues. But it is chosen by the works council, and in certain circumstances the works council can decide to do without an economic committee, and directly take over its functions.

Health and safety committees should be set up in all workplaces with more than 50 employees and in some with between 20 and 50 employees. Members of the works council take part in the meetings of the safety committee.

There is also separate representation for young people and the disabled, who are able to take part in works council discussions of concern to these groups.

In addition to the works council structure, there is separate provision for the representation of senior management. Provided there are 10 senior managers, either in the plant or in the company, they can choose to elect a body to represent them. This can have between one and seven members, depending on the number of senior managers involved.

Tasks and rights

Works councils exist to ensure that some of the key decisions at the workplace are not taken by the employer alone but involve representatives of the workforce. However, the works council cannot consider just the interest of the employees. Its legal basis is to work together with the employer "in a spirit of mutual trust ...for the good of the employees and the establishment". At the same time the law recognises that there will inevitably be conflicts between the interests of the employer and the workforce, and also makes it clear that trade unions have a separate duty to protect the interests of their members.

The law provides the works council with a range of rights, which can be divided into four main categories:

• information – where the works council must be informed;
• consultation – where the works council’s views must be listened to;
• opposition and refusal of consent – where the works council can block the employer’s plans, although this opposition can be set aside by a decision of the labour court; and
• enforceable co-determination – where the works council must agree before the employer can go ahead, unless the employer can persuade the “conciliation committee” (Einigungsstelle) to accept his or her proposals .

The most effective of these rights is enforceable co-determination, sometimes called “genuine” or “equal” co-determination. The conciliation committee, which determines the issue if the works council and the employer cannot agree is composed of representatives of both employer and works council, who may be from inside the workplace or external, with a neutral chair, often a judge from the labour court. The costs of the committee are borne by the employer, and the works council can make its own proposals, which must be considered in the same way as proposals coming from the employer. An attempt is first made to resolve the issue without the neutral chair voting, but, if there is a tie, the proposals are voted on a second time and the chair must vote. Once a decision has been reached, it is binding on both sides.

A survey of works council members in 2015 found that the conciliation committee procedure was used relatively rarely, with only 6.5% saying that they had used it in their workplaces in the previous 12 months.[6] In general, it seemed that often the threat of referring a disputed issue to the conciliation committee was sufficient to get the employer to agree.

The precise rights of the works council vary from area to area. The rights are strongest in the social area – organisation of hours, holidays, methods of payment and so on – and weakest in relation to economic issues. This reflects the overall principle that companies should be as far as possible free to take their own decisions in this area.

On economic issues, the works council should be informed about the economic situation, with quarterly reports in larger companies (more than 1,000 employees), and be consulted about changes in the workplace which could lead to disadvantages for the workforce, including the introduction of new techniques and procedures and in particular new technology. In workplaces with more than 100 employees, many of these rights are exercised by the economic committee, made up partially or wholly of works council members, to which the employer should report once a month. The issues covered by the economic committee include the company’s economic and financial situation, investment and rationalisation plans, work methods, closures and transfers, environmental policies and any possible takeover of the company.

The works council must be consulted on planned changes, like cut-backs, closure, or the introduction of new work methods, which may produce major disadvantages for the workforce. In these circumstances, the works council will normal have a two-fold response. It will try to negotiate the way the changes are implemented, through a so-called “reconciliation of interests”, so as to limit their impact, and it will also aim to agree a “social plan” to compensate employees for their losses. The reconciliation of interests is a voluntary agreement between the two sides, but the social plan, which typically includes elements like the level of redundancy payments, earnings protection in the case of job changes, and payments for additional travelling expenses, is subject to enforceable co-determination. In other words, the issue goes to the conciliation committee, if the two sides cannot agree.

On staff planning and training, the employer is required to inform the works council of overall the staffing needs and discuss these with it. The works council has a particular role in promoting gender equality and it can also make proposals, such as changing working hours, to enhance job security. The works council has a general right to be consulted on training and, where workers need to be re-trained, the issue is subject to enforceable co-determination. Decisions on the implementation of training, such as the practical experience of trainees, the selection of trainees and the introduction of workplace examinations, are also subject to enforceable co-determination, although not whether training takes place at all. The works council also can veto the appointment of trainers if it thinks they are unsuitable.

On health and safety, the works council a general responsibility to try to ensure that the health and safety provisions and accident prevention measures are observed and a right to participate in health and safety inspections and to be given the necessary information. It must also be consulted on the appointment of safety delegates, (Sicherheitsbeauftragte), who are individual employees concerned with health and safety, appointed by the employer

On individual personnel issues, appointments, grading and re-grading, transfers and dismissals, the employer must inform the works council before acting, and the works council can withhold its consent (appointments, grading and re-grading and transfers) or oppose the planned action (dismissal). However, the works council can only do this in certain specific circumstances, such as where the proposal clashes with existing agreements or guidelines, would lead to unfair treatment for the individual concerned or (in dismissal cases) where the employer has failed to take sufficient account of social issues. If the employer does not accept the works council’s position, he or she can take the issue to the labour court, which can overrule the works council’s opposition.

The works council has enforceable co-determination rights where the employer wants to draw up guidelines for future action in these areas, for example selection criteria for redundancy. However, except in larger workplaces (more than 500 employees) the employer cannot be required to draw up guidelines of this sort.

Individual grievances can also be taken to the works council, and, where the works council takes them up, and cannot reach agreement with the employer, the issue goes to the conciliation committee

The works council has the most extensive rights in relation to a range of day-to-day social issues, which affect the workforce. It has enforceable co-determination rights in relation to:

• works rules;
• starting and finishing times and breaks;
• any temporary shortening or lengthening of working time - such as overtime or short time working;
• the time, date and method of payment;
• holiday arrangements;
• the introduction of cameras or other devices to measure work or check the behaviour of employees;
• health and safety arrangements within the framework of the legislation (It must also approve the appointment and dismissal of works doctors and health and safety specialists.);
• arrangements for the operation of works institutions like canteens or sports grounds;
• the rules for the use of works accommodation;
• the principles used for the payment of wages and salaries - for example, should they be based on bonus or time work;
• the setting of bonuses and targets;
• the operation of the works suggestions scheme and
• the introduction of group work.

The contents of staff questionnaires and the personal data held on individual employees for assessments are two other areas subject to enforceable co-determination.

The fact that all these issues can go to the conciliation committee if there are disputes means that on many of them the works council will be able to reach written agreements with the employer. A recent survey has found that on average each works council has 23 works agreements, with working time, holidays and health and safety issues among the topics most frequently covered. [7]

By law, works councils should normally not be involved in collective bargaining on issues, such as pay or working time, which are dealt with by the unions. However, recently works councils have had a greater role in these issues, as some agreements include “opening clauses”, which allow the works council and local management to agree variations to the deal reached by the union and the employers’ association at industry level (see section on collective bargaining).

The trade union representatives in the workplace are there to promote the interests of the union as well as representing union members.

Election and term of office

Nominations to the works council are made either by groups of individual employees – in most cases 5% of those eligible to vote – or from any trade union with at least one member in the workplace. The elections take place every four years, and, depending on the size of the workplace, are organised either on the basis of individual candidates or competing lists.

Trade union representatives, where they exist separately, are chosen in line with individual union rules or guidelines, normally by election at the workplace.

Protection against dismissal

Works council members are protected against dismissal during their period of office and for one year afterwards. They can only be dismissed for extraordinary reasons – such as gross misconduct – and only if the works council agrees, or, if it does not agree, the labour court considers the dismissal to be justified. The same applies to an involuntary transfer, if the consequence is that the works council member loses the right to be a works council member, for example by being transferred to another workplace.

Time-off and other resources

Works council members must be given time off at their normal level of earnings to carry out their duties - such as attending meetings or giving advice. In workplaces with fewer than 200 employees, the details of this are not laid down by law. But in larger workplaces the law sets out the number of works council members who should be freed from their normal work. This is one member in workplaces with 200 to 500 employees; two where there are 501 to 900; three for 901 – 1,500; four for 1,501-2,000 and then one for each extra thousand employees up to 10,000 with one for each 2,000 after that. In practice, not all works councils make full use of their time-off rights.

The employer must bear the costs of the works councils. This includes providing rooms, stationery, photocopying, computers and telecommunications costs. In certain circumstances the employer will pay for outside experts brought in by the works council. This must generally be agreed in advance and is not guaranteed. However, in companies with more than 300 employees, where the employer proposes to make changes that may have a negative impact on the workforce, the works council has a right to the assistance of an external expert. In very large companies the works council, or the works council for the whole group, may have paid professional staff.

Training rights

All works council members have the right to the training that is “necessary” for their work on the works council. This training must be fully paid for by the employer, including the costs of the course, accommodation, travel costs and the wages of the works council member attending.

Works council members also have the right to receive at least three weeks of more general training/education in the course of their period of office. However, this is a less useful right, as the training costs are not covered; only the wages of the member taking part are paid.

Representation at group level

As well as works councils at workplace level, the law also requires the setting up of a central works council at company level (GBR) if a company has several works councils. This brings together representatives of the individual plant works councils – normally one or two from each. This body tackles issues which affect more than one workplace and cannot be dealt with by a single works council.

It is also possible to set up a works council at group level, covering all the companies in a group (KBR). However, this is not obligatory, and can only happen if works councils covering 50% of the total group workforce want to set one up. It deals with issues that affect the whole group or more than one company with the group and cannot be resolved at the level of the central works council.

A high proportion of all works councils are in structures which also include central and/or group works councils. Research in 2019 showed that 17% of all works councils representing more than 20 employees had a central works council above them; 4% had a group works council above them; and 39% were in structures that included both a central works council and a group works council

[1] Tarifbindung und betriebliche Interessenvertretung: Ergebnisse aus dem IAB-Betriebspanel 2018,Tabelle 5 by Peter Ellguth and Susanne Kohaut, May 2019

[2] Trendreport Betriebsratswahlen 2014: Zwischenbericht, by Ralph Greifenstein, Leo Kißler and Hendrik Lange, Hans-Böckler-Stiftung, August 2014 http://www.boeckler.de/pdf_fof/S-2014-695-2-1.pdf (Accessed 16.04.2015)

[3] Trendreport Betriebsratswahlen 2010, by Ralph Greifenstein, Leo Kißler and Hendrik Lange, Hans-Böckler-Stiftung, August 2011

[4] Eurofound (2015), Third European Company Survey – Overview report: Workplace practices – Patterns, performance and well-being, Figures for Table 44

[5] Trendreport Betriebsratswahlen 2010, by Ralph Greifenstein, Leo Kißler and Hendrik Lange, Hans-Böckler-Stiftung, August 2011 and Trendreport: Betriebsratswahlen 2018 – Erste Befunde, Stand Herbst 2018, by Nur Demir, Maria Funder, Ralph Greifenstein, Leo Kißler and Manuela Maschke, IMU 2018

[6] Einigungsstellen­Verfahren relativ selten byWolfram Brehmer and Helge Baumann, Mitbestimmungs-Portal, August 2015 https://www.mitbestimmung.de/html/einigungsstellenverfahren-relativ-selten-953.html

[7] Betriebsvereinbarungen 2017. Verbreitung und Trendthemen by Helge Baumann, Manuela Maschke and Sandra Mierich, WSI-Policy Brief 25,2018

Employee representatives have a right to seats on the supervisory board of larger companies – one-third in companies with 500 to 2,000 employees, half in companies with more than 2,000.

Employees in larger share-based companies (500 employees or more) also have representation on the supervisory board to which the day to day management of the company reports. This right applies both in a public limited company (AG) and a limited company (GmbH), as well as in some other company forms. It does not apply in “ideological companies” – companies whose purposes are primarily political, religious, educational or artistic, or produce news or comment.

The supervisory board can normally appoint and dismiss the main management board, and it reviews its performance. The supervisory board gives advice, participates in setting the company’s strategy, and is provided with financial and other information. The supervisory board also draws up a list of operations where its approval is required before they are undertaken. However, the supervisory board should not take on the functions of the management board.

The proportion of worker representatives varies from one third, in companies with between 500 and 2,000 employees, to 50%, in companies with more than 2,000 workers. Even in these larger companies, the shareholders can win any contested votes on the supervisory board, as the chair represents the shareholders and can cast a second vote in the event that a vote is tied. The one exception is the larger coal or iron and steel companies, where there is a neutral member of the supervisory board, in addition to equal numbers of employee and shareholder representatives.[1]

In the coal and iron and steel industries, the employee representatives have additional rights in the appointment of the labour director, who cannot be appointed against the wishes of the employee representatives. The labour director is responsible for personnel and employment issues.

The employee representatives have the same rights and duties as other supervisory board members. Employee supervisory board members must not be discriminated against as a result of their membership of the board, and they must not be restricted in their work as supervisory board members. They are also entitled to reimbursement of their expenses and adequate training.

The nomination and election processes vary depending on the number of employees and whether the company is in the coal and iron and steel industries.

In companies with 500 to 2,000 employees, the employee representatives, who make up one-third of the total membership of the supervisory board, must be company employees. They are nominated by the works council or by at least 10% of the workforce or 100 employees if this is a smaller number. They are elected by all employees in a secret ballot.

In larger companies, above 2,000 employees, where half of the supervisory board is chosen by the employees, some of the employee representatives are nominated directly by the union or unions with members in the company, and are usually union officials. The others are company employees, although at least one of them must be a representative of the senior managers. The non-senior manager representatives are nominated by at least 20% of the workforce or 100 employees (excluding senior management). The senior manager representatives are nominated by the senior managers, who must put forward two candidates for the single position.

All of the employee representatives, both the employees and the union officials are elected by the whole workforce, either directly or, in larger companies with more than 8,000 employees, indirectly through workforce delegates.

The legislation sets out precisely the make-up of the supervisory board, which depends on the number of employees. There is always a single representative of senior managers and the shareholders always have the same number of representatives as the employees, but the proportion of union nominated members varies depending on the size of the company, although there are always at least two (see table). Typically one of the external union representatives will be the vice-chair of the supervisory board.

Composition of the supervisory board in a company with more than 2,000 employees

Number of employees	Nominated by normal employees	Nominated by unions	Nominated by senior managers	Chosen by shareholders
	Elected by all employees
2,001 to 10,000	3	2	1	6
10,001 to 20,000	5	2	1	8
More than 20,000	6	3	1	10

In companies covered by the legislation for the coal and iron and steel industries, the standard arrangement is an 11-person supervisory board. On the employees’ side this is made up of two employees (nominated by the works council) and two union officials (nominated by the union) plus an additional member chosen by the employee side, who may not be from a union or work in the company. There are five shareholder representatives, although as with the employees, one of them must be not be directly involved. The final (eleventh) member of the supervisory is neutral, and must be nominated by a majority of both sides. The whole supervisory board is formally elected by the annual general meeting of the shareholders. However, this meeting must accept the employee side’s proposals. It is also possible to have 15-strong or 21-strong supervisory boards with a parallel composition.

Legislation passed in 2015 to increase the proportion of women in leading positions in companies and public sector organisations requires companies quoted on Germany’s main stock exchanges and companies whose supervisory boards included employee representatives, to set binding targets for increasing the number of women (formally the under-represented sex, but in practice women) in leading positions. Companies, which were both quoted on the stock exchanges and 50% of whose supervisory board members were employee representatives, had in addition to ensure that 30% of the supervisory board members were women from 2016 onwards.

In calculating this 30% ratio it is possible to take the employee representatives and the shareholder representatives together. However, if either side objects the ratios must be calculated separately, meaning that in this case each side must have at least 30% women.

Employee representatives on supervisory boards have the same term of office as those representing shareholders. This is limited by legislation to a period ending at the annual general meeting following four full financial years in office. As supervisory members are normally appointed at the annual general meeting when the financial year has already begun, this first part-year does not count towards the total and neither does the period between the end of the fourth year and the next annual general meeting. In effect, therefore, the period of office is five years.

A study for the Hans-Böckler-Foundation in 2009 found that there were 1,477 companies with between 500 and 2,000 employees and therefore subject to legislation requiring one third of board members to be employee representatives.[2]

At the end of 2016, figures from the Hans-Böckler-Foundation show that there were 641 companies in Germany with more than 2,000 employees, where employee representatives made up half the supervisory board (including 234 AGs and 354 GmbHs). This figure, which includes 11 European Companies (SEs), is slightly higher than in 2015, when there were 635. This is the first increase in the number of companies where employees account for half the supervisory board since 2002, when there were 767 companies in this position.[3]

[1] This system of board level representation in coal, iron and steel companies was introduced in 1951, reflecting the popular determination that these powerful industries should be brought under greater democratic control and should not be able to be misused, as they had been during the Nazi period.

[2] Drittelbeteiligung in Deutschland – Ermittlung von Gesellschaften, die dem DrittelbG unterliegen, by W Bayer Hans-Böckler-Stiftung

[3] Statistiken zur Mitbestimmungslandschaft, Hans-Böckler-Stiftung http://www.boeckler.de/38347.htm (Accessed 17.07.2019)

European level representatives are chosen through the works council structure. However, for the European Company, there are rules which guarantee seats to trade union officials and – in the largest companies – representatives of senior management, both on the SNB and at board level.

European Works Councils

German members of the special negotiating body (SNB) for the EWC are chosen from the group works council, where such a body exists. If there are only central or ordinary works councils, and they do not cover all the workplaces, then they are extended to cover workplaces not otherwise represented. Employees representing senior management can be members of the SNB if chosen under this procedure. There is also a requirement for the members to reflect the gender make-up of the workforce.

The procedure is the same for German members of an EWC set up under the fallback procedure in the annex to the directive. When there are at least four German members on an EWC set up in this way, the body representing senior management can also send a representative, who has speaking, although not voting, rights.

European Company

German members of the special negotiating body (SNB) for the European Company are chosen by an election body which is the group works council, where such a body exists and only one company is involved. If there is no group works council, but only one German company involved, then the central or individual works councils are extended to cover workplaces not otherwise represented. If several German companies are involved, then the election body is made up of the group works councils of the two companies, or other works councils from the two companies if there are no group works councils. Every third member of the SNB from Germany should be a trade union official and every seventh a representative of senior management. The members should also reflect the gender make-up of the workforce.

The situation is the same for the German members of the SE representative body set up under the fallback procedure, except that there is no provision for trade union officials or representatives of senior management. The legislation states that the representative body should be composed of employees of the European Company.

German representatives at board level are also elected in the same way, although this time the requirement that every third member from Germany should be a trade union official and every seventh a representative of senior management is reinstated.

Further information on the national SE legislation can be found here.

The works council (staff council in the public sector) has a key role in representing employees on health and safety issues. It sends representatives to the joint health and safety committee and its agreement is required in some areas, such as the appointment of the occupational physician (works doctor). There are also safety delegates, who are appointed by the employer.

Basic approach at workplace level

The employer is responsible for health and safety in the workplace and is obliged to appoint occupational physicians (works doctors) and health and safety specialists, although for smaller companies these will be provided by external bodies. The occupational physician and health and safety specialist, where they are present, are required to cooperate with the works council (staff council in the public sector) in carrying out their tasks.

Employee health and safety bodies

In the private sector, the works council (Betriebsrat) which can be set up in all workplaces with five or more employees has an important role in health and safety issues. In the public sector, the staff council (Personalrat) has a similar function. In addition, in larger workplaces (more than 20 employees) a health and safety committee (Arbeitsschutzausschuß) should be set up. This is a joint employer/employee body, which includes two members of the works council/staff council. Finally there are also safety delegates (Sicherheitsbeauftragte), who are appointed by the employer (see section on tasks and rights). They are also members of the health and safety committee.

Numbers and structure

The works council is a purely employee body and its size increases with the number of employees (see table). The arrangements for staff councils in the public sector are similar.[1]

Number employed	Number of works council members
5-20	1
21-50	3
51-100	5
101-200	7
201-400	9
401-700	11
701-1,000	13
1,000-1,500	15
From 1,500 to 5,000 employees the number in the works council increases by two for every 500 employees or part thereof; from 5,000 to 7,000 by two for every 1,000, and above 9,000 by two for each additional 3,000 employees.

A health and safety committee should be set up in all workplaces with more than 20 employees. It consists of the employer or the employer’s representative, two members of the works council/staff council, the occupational physician/s, the health and safety specialist/s and safety delegates (see below).

The number of safety delegates to be appointed depends on the number of employees and the nature of the work and the risks involved. The legislation foresees that safety delegates must be appointed in all workplaces with more than 20 employees, taking account of the number of employees and the threats to health. However, it leaves more detailed guidance in terms of numbers to the accident insurance providers (Unfallversicherungsträger). As well as making payments and otherwise supporting those whose health has been damaged at work, these bodies have a statutory role in the prevention of accidents, occupational diseases and ill health at work (see section on National context).

Following a revision in 2014, the umbrella body covering all the accident insurance providers produced common guidance on the number of safety delegates. This moved away from fixed tables based on employee numbers in specific industries to an approach which stated that the number should be “determined on the basis of the following criteria:

• accident and health hazards present in the enterprise;
• physical proximity of the safety delegates to the employees for whom they are responsible;
• need for safety delegates to be present at the same time as the employees for whom they are responsible;
• similarity of the work carried out by the safety delegates and the employees; and
• number of employees.”[2]

Examples developed by two different accident insurance providers suggest that in practice this guidance might mean between six and seven safety delegates in a manufacturing company with 350 employees – both manual and non-manual – working over two shifts, but that in an administrative operation with 260 employees two safety delegates would be sufficient. The first example comes from the wood and metal working industry,[3] the second from an insurance provider covering the public sector.[4]

Research by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) in 2014 found that 72% of workplaces in Germany had at least one safety delegate and 25% had a health and safety committee. These are both above the EU-28 averages for similar positions. In the EU-28, 58% of workplaces had health and safety representatives and 21% had health and safety committees. (The figures are for workplaces with five or more employees.)[5] However, in making the comparison it is important to note that safety delegates are not elected employee representatives.

Tasks and rights

The works council/staff council has a general responsibility to try to ensure that the health and safety provisions and accident prevention measures are observed and to support the appropriate accident insurance providers in their efforts to eliminate hazards by offering suggestions, advice and information.

It has the right to participate in health and safety inspections and to be given details of any instructions issued by the appropriate authorities. It should also receive details of any reports on health and safety issues as well as notification of any accidents. The works doctor and health and safety specialists must inform the works council/staff council of any significant developments in the area of health and safety and of any proposals they intend to make to the employer. They must also advise the works council/staff council on health and safety issues if they are asked for this.

In addition, the works council/staff council must approve the appointment or dismissal of the works doctor and the health and safety specialist. The arrangements for the prevention of accidents and occupational diseases and for health protection are also subject to works council/staff council agreement. If no agreement is reached, the issue goes to the external arbitration committee (Einigungsstelle), made up of representatives of both employer and works council with a neutral chair, for a decision.

The works council/staff council must also be consulted on the appointment of safety delegates. However, it is not necessary to obtain its agreement to their appointment.

The health and safety committee should be informed and consulted on health and safety and accident prevention issues and it provides a forum in which measures to improve workplace health and safety can be developed.

The role of the safety delegates is more limited. They are to support the employer in health and safety issues, to influence employees and to note failings. The intention is that individuals appointed to this position be aware of both how the work is organised and what needs to be done to keep it safe. They should get the information they need to be effective in the role, and they should take part in the inspections and investigations of accidents and occupational diseases carried out in their area of responsibility by inspectors from the occupational insurance association/ accident fund. They must also be informed of the results of such inspections and investigations.

However, safety delegates are not paid for holding the position, they cannot issue instructions and they cannot be held responsible for health and safety failings.

Frequency of meetings

The works council/staff council should meet the employer at least once a month, although many issues other than health and safety will be discussed. The heath and safety committee should meet at least every three months.

Election and term of office

Works council/staff council members are elected by the whole workforce and the term of office is four years.

The works council/staff council representatives on the health and safety committee are chosen by other members of the works council/staff council.

Safety delegates are appointed by the employer with the involvement of the works council/staff council, but the employer takes the final decision.

Resources, time off and training

Works council/staff council members have paid time off to carry out their duties, including those connected with health and safety, and, in workplaces with more than 200 employees, at least one works council member has the right to be completely freed from other duties. (In the public sector, there must be at least 300 staff before a staff council member has the right to be freed from other duties.) They also have the right to take part in training connected with their activities.

There are no specific time-off rights associated with membership of the health and safety committee, although attendance at its meetings is paid.

Safety delegates also have no specific time-off rights. However, they are likely to be given training which will often be provided by the employer’s occupational insurance association/accident fund.

In certain circumstances, provided the employer agrees, the works council can bring in external experts, paid for by the employer, and this right may be used in connection with health and safety issues. Staff councils in the public sector do not have this right explicitly.

Protection against dismissal

Works council/staff council members can only be dismissed for extraordinary reasons – such as gross misconduct – and only if the works council/staff council or the court agrees (labour court for works council members and administrative court for staff council members).

Safety delegates do not have special protection against dismissal. However, they should not be disadvantaged because of their activities in the role.

Other elements of workplace health and safety

Employers are required to have access to the services of occupational physicians (works doctors) and health and safety specialists, normally engineers or technicians. In some cases they will be employees, in others provided externally. The extent to which this is necessary depends on the type of work being undertaken, the number employed, the way work is organised and the knowledge and training of the employer. These occupational physicians and health and safety specialists have a degree of independence from the employer. In their area of expertise they cannot be given instructions by the employer.

National context

The ministry responsible for health and safety at work is the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (Bundesministerium für Arbeit und Soziales – BMAS) at national level. However, the responsibility for monitoring compliance with health and safety laws and regulations lies with the 16 regional states (Länder) through their occupational safety authorities (Arbeitsschutzbehörden), although the structures and names of these bodies varies. Coordination among the regional states on these issues is provided through the State Committee for Occupational Safety, Health and Technology (Länderausschuss für Arbeitsschutz und Sicherheitstechnik – LASI).

However, these government bodies make up only one of the pillars of the German health and safety structure. The other pillar is provided by bodies providing insurance against accidents at work and occupational ill-health. Funded through obligatory contributions from employers, the occupational insurance associations (Berufsgenossenschaften) in the private sector and the accident funds (Unfallkassen) in the public sector have a statutory role in the prevention of accidents, occupational diseases and ill health at work. They issue regulations which employers are obliged to follow and carry out inspections to ensure compliance, as well as providing advice. Their umbrella body, the German Statutory Accident Insurance (Deutsche Gesetzliche Unfallversicherung – DGUV), which in 2007 brought together the private and public sector accident insurance providers in a single structure, coordinates work in the area of prevention.

The two pillars are brought together in the Joint German Occupational Safety and Health Strategy (Gemeinsame Deutsche Arbeitsschutzstrategie – GDA), which is developed by representatives of central government, the regional states and accident insurance providers. The National Occupational Safety and Health Conference (Nationale Arbeitsschutzkonferenz – NAK) is the decision-making body for the planning, coordination and evaluation of the measures set out in the strategy

Unions (and employers) play a major role in both pillars and in the national conference.

Within the government pillar, they are involved in advisory bodies of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, such as the committee on hazardous substances, the committee on biological agents and the committee on workplaces, which discuss changes to health and safety regulations. They are also involved at regional state level.

The play an even larger role within the accident insurance providers (Unfallversicherungsträger), which are self-governing, with an equal number of representatives of employers and employees on their governing bodies. This includes the governing body of the umbrella organization, the DGUV. Unions and employers together decide on the budget, the level of contributions, prevention measures and all other issues.

Finally both the unions and the employers have three seats on National Occupational Safety and Health Conference.[6]

German health and safety legislation now gives greater weight to psychosocial risks. The Occupational Safety and Health Act (ArbSchG) was changed in October 2013 and specifically refers to the need to organise work in a way which, as far as possible, avoids mental and physical risks to health (§ 4), and adds psychosocial risks at work (“psychische Belastungen bei der Arbeit”) as one of the issues that have to be taken into account when conducting a risk assessment (§ 5).

Key legislation

Act relating to Works Doctors, Safety Engineers and other Occupational Safety Experts (Occupational Safety Act) 1973

Works Constitution Act 1972

Social Code (VII)

Occupational Safety and Health Act 1996

Gesetz über Betriebsärzte, Sicherheitsingenieure und andere Fachkräfte für Arbeitssicherheit (Arbeitssicherheitsgesetz – ASiG) 1973

Betriebsverfassungsgesetz (BVG)1972

Sozialgesetzbuch (SGB) VII

Arbeitsschutzgesetz (ArbSchG) 1996

[1] Each German regional state (Land) and the central government (Bund) has its own legislation governing staff councils. These pages are based on the legislation for central government (Bundespersonalvertretungsgesetz).

[2] DGUV Vorschrift 1, Deutsche Gesetzliche Unfallversicherung e.V

[3] Leitfaden zur Ermittlung der Anzahl der Sicherheitsbeauftragten in den Branchen Holz und Metall, Berufsgenossenschaft Holz und Metall, https://www.bghm.de/fileadmin/user_upload/Arbeitsschuetzer/Praxishilfen/Formulare/Pflichtenuebertragung/Leitfaden_Ermittlung_Anzahl_SiBa.pdf

[4] Leitfaden zur Ermittlung der Anzahl der Sicherheitsbeauftragten, Unfallversicherung Bund und Bahn, https://www.uv-bund-bahn.de/fileadmin/user_upload/9326.pdf

[5] Second European Survey of Enterprises on New and Emerging Risks, European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2016

[6] For more information on the national context see OSH system at national level – Germany by Simon Kaluza, OSH Wiki https://oshwiki.eu/wiki/OSH_system_at_national_level_-_Germany

Trade Unions

DGB and Affiliates

• DGB - German Confederation of Trade Unions (En)
• EVG - Railway and Transport Union
• GdP - police union
• GEW - education and science workers' union
• IG BAU - Building, Agricultural and Environmental Union
• IG BCE - mining, chemicals and energy workers' union
• IG Metall - German Metalworkers Trade Union (En)
• NGG - food, beverages and catering workers' union
• TRANSNET - rail workers' union
• Ver.di - Unified Service Sector Union

CGB and Affiliates

• ADM – Arbeitnehmerverband dt. Milchkontroll- und Tierzuchtbediensteter
• CGB - Christian Federation of Trade Unions
• CGBCE - Christain chemicals and energy workers' union
• CGDE - Christian railworkers' union
• CGM - Christian metalworkers' union
• CGPT - Christian posts and telecoms workers' union
• contterm - Fachgewerkschaft Deutsche Seehäfen
• DHV - Christian white-collar workers in trade and industry
• GKH – Gewerkschaft für Kunststoffgewerbe und Holzverarbeitung im CGB
• GÖD - Christian public service workers' union (Bayern region)
• KFG - Christian drivers' union
• medonset – Health Trade Union
• VkdL - Catholic teachers' union

DBB and linked Organizations

• DBB - civil servants union confederation
• BDF - civil service public forestry workers' union
• BDR - judicial administrators' union
• BLBS - vocational school teachers' union
• DJG - courts staff union
• KOMBA - local government workers' union
• DPVKOM - civil service communication workers' union
• DPolG - police union
• DSTG - tax staff union
• VBE - education and science workers' union
• VDL - civil service food, agriculture and envionment workers' union
• VLW - economics schools teachers
• Tarifunion - bargaining combine of public service unions

ULA and linked Organizations

• ULA - Confederation of Executives in German Industry (En)
• Forum Fach- und Führungskräfte e.V.
• VAA - chemicals executives union
• VGA – Bundesverband Assekuranzführungskräfte
• KDF – Kreis Deutschsprachiger Führungskräfte
• bvhd – Bundesverband der Verwaltungsbeamten des höheren Dienstes in Deutschland
• VWMA – Führungskräfte des VW-Konzerns
• VDL - food and agriculture executives' union
• VGA - insurance executives' union

Other Union Organizations

• Marburger Bund - doctors' union
• FAU/IAA - anarcho-syndicalist union

Employers

BDA and Affiliates

• BDA- Confederation of German Employers' Associations (En)
• AGV - insurance employers
• AGV - housing employers
• AGVStahl - steel industry employers
• BDVZ - newspaper publishing employers
• BVD - German Printing Industry Federation (En)
• BZA - temporary work agency employers (En)
• DEBRIV - brown coal (lignite) employers
• DEHOGA - German Hotels and Restaurants Association (En)
• Deutsche Bühnenverein - theatre employers
• DSSV - fitness and sport centre employers
• GDLFA - farming employers
• Gesamtmetall - metalworking and electrical industry employers (En)
• Gesamtverband Textil+Mode - textiles employers
• HDB - construction employers
• HDE - retail employers
• HDH - wood and plastics employers
• HDS - Federation of the German Shoe Industry
• Bundesverband Deutscher Baustoff-Fachhandel e.V.
• VAP - paper industry employers
• VDS - sawmill industry employers
• Verband Bergbau, Geologie und Umwelt e.V.

Other Employer Organizations

• BDI - Confederation of German Industry
• ZDH - Central Association of German Crafts
• DIHK - Association of German Chambers of Commerce and Industry (En)

Government

• Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs
• Ministry of Economics

Other Links

• Federal Labour Institute
• IAB - Institute for Employment Research (En)
• Federal Statistical Office (EN)
• Cologne Institute for Economic Research
• WSI - Institute for Economics and Social Science (En)
• Hans-Böckler-Stiftung - DGB-linked research centre (En)
• IMK – Institut für Makroökonomie und Konjunkturforschung in der Hans-Böckler-Stiftung
• Forum Arbeit - DGB-linked site on labour issues
• DGUV - German Social Accident Insurance (En)