This chapter explores the German experience with works councils. It will assess the extent of the works councils in Germany during the interwar period and German interest in alternatives such as ERPs and union management. The chapter will explore issues such as the disclosure of information to works councillors, access to the board of directors and the role of works councils in dismissals, welfare, safety, collective agreements, the promoting of productivity and engagement in broader political issues. It will also examine the impact of works councils on trade unionism, women and management. Like their ERP counterparts in the US, the German works councils were legislated out of existence. The chapter will conclude with a discussion of their demise.

The Extent of German Works Councils

Unfortunately there are no surviving data on the number of works councils in Germany between 1920 and 1933. Using dated data from the last German industrial census of 1907, Guillebaud estimated in 1926 that there had been 108,789 agricultural, industrial and commercial establishments employing 8,379,200 workers that could have had works councils. At the industry level, in 1922 there were 32,565 wage-earning and 7,219 salaried employees who were works stewards or members of works councils in 11,557 establishments in the highly organised metal industry. In the same year, there were also 25,239 works councillors in 7,219 textile factories.

The number of workplaces with works councils fluctuated with economic conditions. Following the hyperinflation of 1923, the move towards stabilising the German economy led to dismissals and increased unemployment, which weakened the power of trade unions and works councils. These circumstances made employees reluctant to stand for positions on works councils due to fears of victimisation and an unwillingness to be involved in the dismissal of fellow employees. With the resurgence of the economy, and thus trade unions, in 1925 and 1926, there was a revival of interest in works councils among employers.

Significant numbers of eligible workplaces did not have works councils. The decline in fortune of works councils in 1923–24 can be seen in the context of growing numbers of eligible workplaces without works councils.