The electoral board, also called an election committee () is the group of employees responsible for overseeing the resulting in the formation of a

Works Council A works council is a shop-floor organization representing workers that functions as a local/firm-level complement to trade unions but is independent of these at least in some countries. Works councils exist with different names in a variety of re ...

in Germany. The framework to establish an electoral board are described in §16-17a of the

Works Constitution Act The Works Constitution Act 1972 (german: Betriebsverfassungsgesetz, ), abbreviated BetrVG, is a German federal law governing the right of employees to form a works council. History In the Stinnes-Legien Abkommen 1918, at the collapse of the Ge ...

and its legal responsibilities are further supplemented in the .

Composition

The electoral board typically consists of 3 non-executive employees who are eligible to vote in a Works Council election of that particular workplace

establishment Establishment may refer to: * The Establishment, a dominant group or elite that controls a polity or an organization * The Establishment (club), a 1960s club in London, England * The Establishment (Pakistan), political terminology for the military ...

. The electoral board has a chairperson who represents the electoral board. In exceptional cases, a larger electoral board is possible, for example in a very large workplace. The number of members must remain odd pe
BetrVG §16

Trade unions A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and Employee ben ...

can additionally send observer to all electoral board meetings.

Tasks

The electoral board must prepare the Works Council elections without delay. It determines the time, place and eligibility of voters and candidates for the Works Council election. In order to carry out its duties effectively, the electoral board determine whether it needs any legal trainings, paid by the employer. Similar to a Works Council, all decisions are made through formal resolutions, passed by a simple majority of its members. After officially announcing the results of the Works Council election, the chairperson of the electoral board must hold a convening meeting with the newly elected Works Council. At that constituent meeting, the electoral board ceases to exist.

Formation

Any existing Works Council whose term expires in less than 10 weeks, must appoint a new electoral board. If the Works Council fails to do so and if a

Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

or Group Works Council exists, they can appoint the electoral board instead pe
BetrVG §16
In cases where no Group, Central or Works Council exists, the electoral board is elected directly by employees at an in-person election meeting ''(German: Wahlversammlung)'' pe

If the majority of employees present do not elect the members of an electoral board, a local can appoint the members instead upon request. The of the Hans Boeckler Foundation documented different forms of obstruction against Works Council elections by employers. In 66% of cases, prevention of the formation of electoral board itself was a significant factor and in 13% of cases, "extraordinary termination" of individual members of the electoral board was a factor.

Legal protections

Members of the electoral board can only be terminated from their workplace, through "extraordinary terminations" (a higher bar than regular termination) defined in the . Once an individual person leaves the electoral board (whether through resignation or because the electoral board itself ceases to exist), that individual continues to be protected from ordinary termination for six more months.

References

External links

Works Constitution Act §14
(English)

legal text (German) {{Authority control Works council (Germany) Election commissions