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Employee representation

Employee representation may be defined as the right of employees to seek a union or individual to represent them for the purpose of negotiating with management on such issues as wages, hours, benefits and working conditions. In the workplace, workers may be represented by trade union and through works councils – or similar structures elected by all employees. EU law has established rights and obligations for employees and their representatives to be informed and consulted via a set of directives that provide for the information and consultation of the workers, at both national and international level.

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Eurofound expert(s)

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Ricardo Rodriguez Contreras is a research manager in the Working Life unit at Eurofound and focuses on comparative industrial relations, social dialogue and collective bargaining...

Research manager,
Working life research unit
Publications results (74)

Headquartered in Utrecht/The Netherlands with subsidiaries in Germany, Italy and Finland, Equens is a full-service payment processing company offering services in payment and card processing and a European leader in this business segment. The transformation of Equens N.V. into an SE was concluded in

25 April 2011

MAN was the first German company to create a SE, by the conversion of its subsidiary MAN B&W Diesel into MAN Diesel SE in August 2006. This was followed in 2009 by the conversion of MAN itself into MAN SE. Both management and the employee representatives were well prepared for negotiating an

25 April 2011

Allianz SE is an integrated financial services provider with more than 150,000 employees. The company serves approximately 75 million customers in about 70 countries. Allianz SE operates and manages its activities primarily through four operating segments: property-casualty, life/health, asset

13 March 2011

The European Company Statute (SE) is based on the Council Regulation on the Statute for a European Company (2157/2001/EC) and on the Directive supplementing the Statute for a European Company with regard to the involvement of employees (2001/86/EC). It is one of the most important pieces of company

08 March 2011

This report presents some descriptive findings of Eurofound’s European Company Survey (ECS) 2009 on the structure of industrial relations and social dialogue as well as working time patterns in the commerce sector in Europe. Collective bargaining coverage and the degree of employee representation in

01 December 2010

This case study focuses on the measures used by ArcelorMittal to cut costs and avoid involuntary redundancies during the crisis in its largest Romanian subsidiary. The study aims to assess the effectiveness of the various measures applied to keep staff in employment and to ensure the company’s

26 September 2010

European Works Councils (EWCs) are highly significant in terms of European industrial relations. They represent the first genuinely European institution of worker interest representation at enterprise level. They reflect the growing recognition of the need to respond to the ‘Europeanisation’ of

12 May 2009

In September 1994, the Council of Ministers decided on a Directive on the establishment of a European Works Council for the purposes of informing and consulting employees (94/45/EC). The emergence of European Works Councils (EWCs) is a major part of the development of an industrial relations system

16 October 2008

In September 1994, the Council of Ministers decided on a Directive on the establishment of a European Works Council for the purposes of informing and consulting employees (94/45/EC). The emergence of European Works Councils (EWCs) is a major part of the development of an industrial relations system

16 October 2008

In September 1994, the Council of Ministers decided on a Directive on the establishment of a European Works Council (EWC) for the purposes of informing and consulting employees (94/45/EC). The emergence of EWCs is a major part of the development of an industrial relations system at European level

16 October 2008

Online resources results (298)

Portugal: latest working life developments Q2 2018

The new tripartite action plan to combat job insecurity and new measures to promote collective bargaining are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on one of the latest developments in working life in Portugal in the second quarter of 2018.

United Kingdom: Latest working life developments – Q2 2017

Mounting pressure to end the 1% pay cap on public sector workers, falling union membership, the ‘gig economy’, and a strike at British Airways are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in the United Kingdom in the second

Malta: Law amended in attempt to stop trade union disputes over recognition

Amendments have been made to Malta’s Employment and Industrial Relations Act to try to stop unions getting involved in recognition disputes. There have been many of these disputes, generally just before the expiry of a collective agreement. The amendments provide a clearer definition of trade union

Malta: Latest working life developments – Q1 2017

A campaign for minimum wage increases led by non-governmental organisations; declining trade union density; and continuing attempts to address disputes between trade unions are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in

Austria: Latest working life developments – Q1 2017

New legislation regarding social and wage dumping, qualification and childcare benefits, the federal government’s work programme and an increase in members for the Austrian Trade Union Federation are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments

Netherlands: Latest working life developments – Q4 2016

The issues at stake in the run-up to the General Election, the favourable economic growth and falling unemployment and the debates among the social partners and politicians on flexwork are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working

United Kingdom: Government launches consultation on worker representatives on company boards

Prime Minister Theresa May first pledged to put worker representatives on the boards of UK companies in July 2016, shortly after taking office. This article outlines the evolution of the proposal, up to the launch on 29 November of the formal process of consultation on corporate governance, and

Germany: Compromise struck on new temporary agency work legislation

A revised bill on temporary agency work and service work, set to be passed by the German Federal Government in early March 2016, was finally passed by Parliament in October and awaits approval by the Federal Council. It contains limitations on the use of temporary agency work, but also provides room

Netherlands: Latest working life developments – Q2 2016

Pensions and flexible work, more rights for works councils and the latest data on industrial action and collective agreements are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in the Netherlands in the second quarter of 2016.

Estonia: Industrial relations and occupational health and safety – second Work Life Survey 2015

In 2015, the second Estonian Work Life Survey was conducted by Statistics Estonia. This article describes some of the results of the survey, focusing on industrial relations and occupational health. The results showed that the collective agreement coverage rate as well as the level of employee


Blogs results (1)
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Trade unions in many EU Member States face the issue of declining membership. This is a fundamental challenge for organised labour, but it is premature to speak about the redundancy unions: when it comes to important decisions affecting the workplace, restructuring being one, trade unions remain a

20 Noviembre 2019
Data results (1)
24 Octubre 2023
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