The European Parliament approves the new European Works Council Directive

IndustriAll Europe is particularly pleased with the support of the European Parliament to strengthen democracy at work. An overwhelming majority of 414 MEPs voted in favour of a new Directive which will provide EWCs with the tools they need to anticipate and manage the many challenges our industries are facing.

This concludes a lengthy legal process, in which MEP Dennis Radtke played a key role as initiator of a report on the revision of the EWC Directive, which was adopted in February 2023.

The new Directive largely responds to the key priorities for a EWC Directive that delivers for workers, as put forward by the ETUC and strongly supported by industriAll Europe since 2017.

Some of the highlights of the new Directive include:

• Clarifications on topics, such as the definition of transnational matters, the use of confidentiality and the support by legal and trade union experts;
• Extension of the competences to include crucial issues, such as the anticipation of change and management of restructuring processes including green and digital transitions;
• A clear instruction that consultation of the EWC must take place prior to the adoption of any decision.

We are now counting on a swift approval by the Employment Council of the European Union, followed by the transposition into national legislation.

Isabelle Barthès, Deputy General Secretary of industriAll Europe said: “This is a major step forward for all European Works Councils , who have been struggling for far too long to have their rights respected and to be truly involved in the decision-making process in their company. IndustriAll Europe will be at the forefront, ensuring that all of our more than 550 European Works Councils can fully benefit from these new conditions.”