Board-level participation and workers’ financial participation in Europe: State of the art and developments trends

With the Lisbon strategy of 2000, Europe set itself ambitious economic and political goals. Within the framework of a ten-year strategy, the European Council wants to make the EU into the most dynamic and competitive economic area in the world.

High social standards underpinned by the European social model and ecological sustainability were important elements of the strategy thus clearly underlining the importance of achieving the strategy according to a highly developed economic model that does not sacrifice other important considerations.

The report argues that there can be no future European social and competition model without workers’ participation for the knowledge-based industrial society.

The spirit of the Strategy is clear: Europe needs highly qualified workers who are committed to “their” enterprise. This will be supported by obligatory worker involvement, at the workplace up to the administrative organs of a company.