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The Reform of the German Works Constitution Act: A Critical Assessment
Author(s) -
Addison John T.,
Bellmann Lutz,
Schnabel Claus,
Wagner Joachim
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
industrial relations: a journal of economy and society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.61
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1468-232X
pISSN - 0019-8676
DOI - 10.1111/j.0019-8676.2004.00336.x
Subject(s) - german , legislature , constitution , reform act , competence (human resources) , profitability index , economics , political science , law , public administration , management , finance , history , archaeology
Since 1920, the thrust of German law on workplace codetermination has changed on a number of occasions. We describe the latest swing of the legislative pendulum—favoring works council formation and competence—and evaluate the case for it. We provide new information on the extent of works councils before reviewing the evidence on their economic effects, focusing on some new results from matched‐plant data. If the former evidence points to a codetermination deficit, this shortfall does not appear to have negative consequences for workplace productivity, profitability, and employment.