A Feminisation of Transnational Social Dialogue? Evidence from German & French EWCs/SEWCs

Background and Objectives

Despite rising female employment, women remain underrepresented in employee representation bodies – both on national and transnational level. The revised European Works Council (EWC) Directive 2025/2450 strives for better gender representation in EWCs and select committees. However, implementation is complex, as representation and designation processes are shaped by national systems, company structures, and union practices.

This project focuses on chairpersons of European Works Councils/SE Works Councils (EWC/SEWC) and their trajectories as entry points to explore how gender impacts designation and articulation processes within the transnational system of interest representation. We argue that shifts in these positions may have cascading effects on the broader composition of EWCs/SEWCs.

Empirically, the project focuses on the domain of industriAll Europe, covering some of the less feminized sectors in Europe that are therefore most likely to be affected by the new EWC Directive. We will look at multinational companies in France and Germany, which host the majority of EWCs/SEWCs.

Research Questions

This project investigates three main questions concerning EWC/SEWC chairpersons in German and French multinational companies.

First, it examines the profiles of EWC/SEWC chairpersons: What is their gender composition? What are their representative and professional trajectories, role perceptions, as well as (gender-related) expectations and experiences? Do cross-national differences emerge?

Second, it analyses national-level designation processes: Which actors (e.g. works councils, trade unions) shape candidate selection? What criteria and formal or informal rules apply? What role does gender play in these processes?

Third, it explores the chairperson’s role in practice: How do they shape the functioning, leadership style, agenda, and strategic orientation of EWCs/SEWCs? Does gender affect working methods, negotiations, and attention to equality issues?

Methodology

The project deploys a mixed-methods research design. On the quantitative side, we conduct an online survey among chairpersons of EWCs/SEWCs. This allows us to build the first systematic dataset on their profiles and trajectories (in terms of education, skills, activism), assess gender representation, and examine cross-country variation.

On the qualitative side, 16 case studies – eight in each country – will be conducted, covering different sub-sectors and gender compositions. The case studies combine biographical interviews with chairpersons, focusing on their trajectories and role perceptions, and semi-structured interviews with trade union officials and works council members to reconstruct organizational and institutional designation patterns.