Cooperation : Germany

Workers and entrepreneurs are not in opposition to one another all the time, however. They also cooperate in many ways. This is most apparent on the shop floor, but the representatives of both sides’ organizations also meet on many other occasions, for example on apprentice examination committees. In the labor courts, which rule on employment disputes, there are lay judges at all levels from both sides. Within the framework of so-called self-government, the management boards and representative assemblies of the social insurance schemes (unemployment insurance, health insurance, accident insurance and pension insurance) are comprised half of employers’ representatives and half of employees’ representatives ("representatives of the insured"). Politicians also frequently seek the views of the leaders of the two sides’ organizations. These and other forms of cooperation help to foster mutual understanding without blurring the differences between their respective interests.