TY - JOUR

T1 - Works Councils and the Management of Human Resources

T2 - Evidence from German Establishment Data

AU - Pfeifer, Christian

PY - 2014/2

Y1 - 2014/2

N2 - This empirical research note focuses on the question of whether German works councils are sand or grease in the management of human resources and if the effects differ between three different works council-management relationship types. For this purpose, the author uses survey data from more than 11,000 German firms. The main result is that the effects of works councils on expected HRM (human resource management) problems in German firms are heterogeneous with respect to different aspects of HRM and to differences in works council-management relations. The findings are consistent with rent-protection, rent-sharing and voice functions of works councils.

AB - This empirical research note focuses on the question of whether German works councils are sand or grease in the management of human resources and if the effects differ between three different works council-management relationship types. For this purpose, the author uses survey data from more than 11,000 German firms. The main result is that the effects of works councils on expected HRM (human resource management) problems in German firms are heterogeneous with respect to different aspects of HRM and to differences in works council-management relations. The findings are consistent with rent-protection, rent-sharing and voice functions of works councils.

KW - Economics

KW - Codetermination

KW - employment decisions

KW - human resource management

KW - works council relations

U2 - 10.1177/0143831X12464068

DO - 10.1177/0143831X12464068

M3 - Journal articles

VL - 35

SP - 143

EP - 163

JO - Economic and Industrial Democracy

JF - Economic and Industrial Democracy

SN - 0143-831X

IS - 1

ER -