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Fisher, Paul / Works councils in Germany
([1951])
Dangers to the union position, pp. 18-27
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Page 18
- 18 - DANGERS TO THE UNION POSITION Statement of the Problem There is, however, also a series of dangers to the union position involved in the German works councils. What are they and to what extent have they been met by the unions? The following discussion will deal with: 1) the works council as a competing labor organization; 2) the works council as a means for other social forces (rival unions, political parties, employer) to wean the allegiance of the workers away from bona fide unionism; and 3) a potentially harmful works council influence upon union policy, structure and strength. Not all of the potential dangers are real. On the other hand, not all of those which are real are fully met. Possibility of Dual Unionism Inasmuch as the works council as well as the union aim to represent the interests of the workers, what prevents the works council from becoming a dual union? Union authority is derived from a voluntary membership. If the law requires the establishment of works councils, but not a union membership, works councils may come theoretically into being which have either no union connection, or a non-union majority. However, the latter hardly exist at all. Wherever they do appear, the union makes a concerted effort to win over the majority and in all reported instances, except in a small textile plant, the effort was successful. Works councils which have no union connection, however, exist quite often. An analysis of this group is likely to show that non-union works councils are found precisely in those areas where union organization is difficult, costly and disappointing, such as in small, handicraft and patriarchal enterprises, in rural areas, and in industries with a high percentage of female workers. In sufficiently numerous instances, works councils in such unorganizable areas are not even formed or disappear after serving the interests of the employer for a time. Ther mortality is especially high in a depression. In small-scale enterprises where the union can hardly gain a foothold, works councils are not formed, even where they are compulsory by law. In Wuerttemberg-Hohenzollern, for instance, only 47 percent of the workers participated in 1949 in works council elections in enterprises with 5-19 employees, only 64 percent in firms with 20-49, but 99 percent in plants with more than 200 workers. Since small-scale industry predominates in this State,
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