1. There are thresholds relating to the size of a company that determine employee representation

The size of the company (employer) is defined in general terms for the purposes of employee representation. A condition for the establishment of a trade union is that the employer employs employees in an employment relationship, and a condition for the functioning of a works council is that the employer employs at least 50 employees.

An employee trustee may be appointed at an employer employing fewer than 50 but more than three employees.

The rights and duties of the works council and of the employee trustee are the same.

2. Circumstances under which employees may organise employee representation

Employee representation is voluntary and employees’ representatives are the relevant trade union body, works council or employee trustee. For occupational health and safety, the employee’s representative is also the occupational health and safety representative.

Within a cooperative, where the member’s employment relationship with the cooperative is a component of the membership, the employees’ representative is a special body of the cooperative elected by a member’s meeting.

3. Requirements an employee should meet in order to become a representative

A condition for the representation of employees through a trade union body is establishment of a trade union organisation at the employer, which is a civic association. The trade union is obliged to inform the employer in writing of the start of its activity at the employer and to submit a list of the members of the trade union body to the employer.

All employees of the company have the right to elect members of the works council or the employee trustee if they have worked at the employer for at least 3 months.

Every company employee over 18 years of age who has no criminal record, is not a person close to the employer, and has worked at the employer for at least 3 months, has the right to be elected as a member of the works council or as an employee trustee. 

4. What responsibilities can employees’ representatives carry out

Employees’ representatives – the trade union body, works council or employee trustee have the right to:

• be part of joint decision-making;
• take part in discussions;
• information; 
• perform control activities;
• transnational information.

Only a trade union body has the right to collective bargaining.

5. Employees’ rights and obligations, protections and guarantees of representation

Any activity carried out by employees’ representatives that is directly linked to the performance of the employer’s tasks is deemed to be the performance of work for which the employee is entitled to be paid.

For the performance of the duties of employees’ representatives or for participation in related training, the employer shall grant working leave with wage compensation for a period of time agreed between the employer and the trade union or between the employer and the works council or employee trustee.

The employer shall, according to its operational capacity, provide the employees’ representatives with an appropriate room with the facilities necessary for their activities, free of charge, and shall cover the costs associated with their maintenance and technical operation.

Employees’ representatives are obliged not to disclose facts which have come to their knowledge in the course of their duties and which have been classified as confidential by the employer. This obligation continues to apply for 1 year after an employee’s representative’s duties have come to an end.

Employees’ representatives shall not be disadvantaged or penalised by the employer for the performance of their duties.

Employees’ representatives are protected against measures that might harm them, including termination of employment motivated by their status or activity, during their term of office and for a period of 6 months thereafter.

The employer may dismiss a member of the relevant trade union body, a member of the works council or an employee trustee or terminate their employment relationship immediately only with the prior consent of those employees’ representatives. If the employees’ representatives refuse to grant consent, the notice of termination or immediate termination of the employment relationship shall be null and void.