[1] In the Stinnes–Legien Agreement of 1918, during the collapse of the German Empire in the aftermath of World War I, an agreement was reached between trade union confederation leader Carl Legien and industrialist leader Hugo Stinnes, so that capital and labour would cooperate on an equal footing in all aspects of economic management.
To implement this principle, in 1920 the legal predecessor Betriebsrätegesetz [de] (Works Councils Act) mandated consultative bodies for workers in businesses with more than 20 employees.
The Works Constitution Act reserved 1/3rd of Supervisory Board seats for employee representatives, in contrast with 1/2 for the coal industry.
[3]: 74 Instead, the Conservative government emphasized in the law, the legal restrictions on works councils and their independence from trade unions.
[5] Twenty years later in 2021, the Betriebsrätemodernisierungsgesetz (Works Council Modernization Act) passed, expanding co-determination rights to include artificial intelligence in the workplace, a new framework for online/hybrid meetings of works council proceedings, expanded simplified election procedure and lowers the voting age to 16 years old.
The eligibility criteria for forming works council in large and small companies alike, and their relation with trade unions.
The delegation is able to attend all internal works council meetings, and even delay voting decisions if the interests of youth and trainees are not taken into account.
Special provisions regarding formation of works council apply to maritime, aviation and social, charitable, religious organizations.
Similarly, if any members of works council, trade union leak business secrets about a company, that too is a criminal offense.