IG Metall rejects employer calls to weaken works council rights

Germany’s IG Metall has drawn a firm line against employer proposals to reduce the powers of works councils. “Anyone who portrays works councils and their rights as a nice-to-have or even a nuisance is provoking our fierce resistance,” said André Arenz, the union’s executive board member responsible for co-determination.

The dispute follows comments by employer president Rainer Dulger and a working paper from the Confederation of German Employers’ Associations, or BDA. The paper calls for reform of the Works Constitution Act so companies can reach decisions more quickly. It says participation rights should be restricted or even abolished for that purpose.

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Anyone who portrays works councils and their rights as a nice-to-have or even a nuisance is provoking our fierce resistance.

Dulger argued that companies should be able to make urgent decisions without first waiting for a ruling from a conciliation committee. Arenz rejected that approach, saying works councils were not a burden but an asset to economic success.

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Companies with co-determination do better work and are demonstrably more future-ready.

“Companies with co-determination do better work and are demonstrably more future-ready,” Arenz said. He argued that works councils protect employees’ health and promote fair working conditions, preventing management from making unilateral decisions at workers’ expense.

Arenz also said works councils helped preserve workplace cohesion and democracy through employee participation. IG Metall supports a more modern Works Constitution Act and simpler works council elections, but insists that co-determination must be strengthened, not cut back.

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Companies must be able to make urgent decisions without first waiting for a ruling from the conciliation committee.