Work\'s council

The work's council is, in France (in Belgium, one speaks about Conseil of company), one of the institutions representative of the personnel within the company.

Instituted by the ordinance of the February 22nd 1945 (corrected by the law of the May 16th 1946) in all the companies of 50 paid and more, it holds at the same time social and economic attributions. Their idea goes back to the social Committees of establishment set up by the Charte of work in 1941. It was then included in the program of the National council of resistance, in 1944.

The legislation applying to the work's councils corresponds to title III of book IV of the Labor regulation (of with).

Composition

The EC is composed of the head of undertaking or his representative, who chairs, possibly assisted of two collaborators (advisory), of the staff representatives, of which the number varies according to the size of the establishment and, possibly, of one or more trade-union representatives designated by the trade-union organizations.

Manpower of the company and many representatives:

50 to 74 paid: 3 holders and 3 substitutes
75 to 99 paid: 4 holders and 4 substitutes
100 to 399 paid: 5 holders and 5 substitutes
400 to 749 paid: 6 holders and 6 substitutes
750 to 999 paid: 7 holders and 7 substitutes
1.000 to 1.999 paid: 8 holders and 8 substitutes
2.000 to 2.999 paid: 9 holders and 9 substitutes
3.000 to 3.999 paid: 10 holders and 10 substitutes
4.000 to 4.999 paid: 11 holders and 11 substitutes
5.000 to 7.499 paid: 12 holders and 12 substitutes
7.500 to 9.999 paid: 13 holders and 13 substitutes
From 10.000: 15 holders and 15 substitutes

The work's council appoints its secretary among the elected representatives of the personnel, and adopts rules of procedure which define its operating rules.

Direction

The head of undertaking is the president of right. Nevertheless, this statute confers a very limited power to control to him, and it does not have any additional weight in the votes. In certain cases (dismissal of a delegate, social activities, etc), it should not take part in the poll. In addition, it is strongly constrained by the regulation. Thus, if it returns to him to convene the EC formally, it cannot refuse an extraordinary convocation if the majority of the elected officials signed a demand for this direction.

The head of undertaking can be made replace by a representative, to whom it gives written capacity without which this delegation is null.

The president of the EC can be made accompany paid assistants by the company (DRH or its assistant, lawyer…). It is traditionally the case of the DRH (Directeur of human resources), or of the DAS (directing of the social affairs) in the large companies. Any other council external with the company can be invited with a full session of the committee, if the other part the counsel (this is valid for the direction and the staff representatives).

Staff representatives

The term of the office of the elected members of the work's council (like site committee or central committee of company) was carried two years to four years by law 2005-882 of August 2nd, 2005. This new duration of mandate applies however only as from the elections of these elected representatives intervening after August 3rd, 2005, publication date of the law of the above mentioned August 2nd. Moreover, an industrywide agreement, an agreement of group or an company agreement, according to the case, can fix one term of the office ranging between two and four years.

RP are elected directly by the whole of the personnel to the poll proportional. The law of 1945 envisaged a majority poll, but in front of the protest of the CFTC, the poll proportional was established the July 7th 1947. The trade unions representative enjoy the monopoly of presentation the candidates to the first turn. If the participation in the elections proves to be lower than 50%, a second turn is organized, where candidates without label can present themselves. The poll is proportional, with attribution of the remainders to the strongest average.

The number of holders varies according to the size of the company, of 3 (50 to 74 paid) to 15 (more than 10.000 paid). They have each one a substitute. Starting from a certain size, they are organized by colleges , either by statute (frameworks, employees), or by activity (engineers, commercial, etc).

During the first meeting, the staff representatives choose in their center a secretary, only function imposed by the legislation, and possibly a treasurer, an assistant secretary and an assistant treasurer. The secretary is the most important character of the EC and must be obligatorily selected among the regular members. He represents it with the daily newspaper near the personnel, writes the official reports (or, according to the Rules of procedure, sub-contracted this task with an external person receiving benefits) and posts them for the employees.

They should not be confused with the union delegate (DP), which constitute another representative authority of the personnel. Nevertheless, since the quinquennial law for the use of the December 20th 1993, the companies cash between 50 and 199 paid can choose to amalgamate these two representations, within a single Délégation of the personnel.

Trade-union representatives

Historically, their presence within the EC is due to the CGT which, at the time of the creation of the institution, had required that the large trade-union organizations be able to be present within the EC, even if they did not have any elected official among the staff representatives. Each representative trade union present in the company has a representative, who takes share with the debates, can deliver his opinion on the points voted on, but does not have right to vote. In the companies of less than 300 paid, the trade-union representative of a power station is obligatorily the Union representative.

Operation

According to, subparagraph 1 of the labor regulation, a distinction is drawn up for the determination of the minimal periodicity of the meetings according to the threshold of manpower of the company and according to whether the option of the single delegation of the personnel were retained or not.

Thus in the companies of 150 paid and more and in the companies of less than 200 paid having chosen for the single delegation of the personnel (), the committee will meet at least 1 time per month.

On the other hand in the companies of less than 150 paid and which did not choose the single delegation the meeting is then two-monthly. The meetings are held on convocation of the president of the work's council. This one addresses to the members the convocation strictly speaking, together with an day order contresigned by the secretary. , Subparagraph 2 of the labor regulation lays out that " the day order is stopped by the head of undertaking and the secretary and official statement with the members at least three days before the séance".

Each meeting must give place to a Procès-verbal of the meeting of the work's council, discussed, amended if necessary and approved during the following meeting.

The EC can form commissions in its center. In the companies of more than 1000 paid, an economic commission is created of right. Its mission is to examine all the documents of an economic nature or financial presented by Management. It returns then its conclusions in front of the EC joined together in plenary session.

It has a room arranged especially within the company. The hardware requirement with the performance of its duties (computer, printer, photocopier, etc) must also be placed at its disposal. The employer must pour a to him subsidy of operation at least equal to 0,2% of the rough wage bill, as well as a subsidy intended for the Social activities and Cultural (ASC). The EC is the only decision maker of the assignments of the budget of the ASC. Consequently, the employer, chair the EC, cannot take part in the vote of a resolution concerning management of the social activities and cultural.

Attention! the subsidies of operation cannot be used for the social activities and cultural. Nevertheless the production of interest of the sums placed could be used with the liking of the committee.

Competences

Economic life of the company

Under the law of the October 28th 1982, known as “Law Auroux”, it

“has the aim of ensuring a collective expression of the employees, allowing the permanent taking into account their interests in the decisions relating to the management and the economic and financial evolution of the company, with the organization of work, the professional training and the techniques of production. ”

The employer must inform then to consult the EC on a certain number of projects, among which:

modification of the duration or the organization of work;
introduction of new technologies;
modification of the rules of procedure;
collective redundancy for economic motive;
dismissal of the elected representatives of the personnel.

Fault of this stage, the decision is regarded as not thus validates, and nonopposable with the employees. The EC can carry felt sorry for to penal for offense of obstacle to its good performance. Lastly, if, in the absence of consultation of the EC, the employer forms a request near the Factory inspectorate, this one must refuse automatically.

Since 1982, competences of the EC were widened. This one must be informed economic situation of the company, in particular by the means of quarterly and semi-annual tables and single documents (annual report, account, local balance sheet for the companies of more than 300 paid, report/ratio on the equality man-women, etc). Those must be given before the meeting of the EC, to make it possible to the elected officials to take note of it. The members of the EC can follow economic formations.

In order to better apprehend the abundant data by the direction, the work's council can call upon a Expert-comptable, remunerated by the company, charged examining the accounts and with carrying out a total diagnosis of the company. His report/ratio is then discussed in EC. It can also appoint an certified public accountant in order to assist it within the framework of the procedure of information and consultation envisaged by the article L 321-4 in the event of project of collective redundancy for economic motive.

When the committee “is informed of facts likely to affect in an alarming way the economic situation of the company”, it can exert its right of alarm, i.e. to implement a procedure likely to break up into three times (C. wk. Article L 432-5):

it must require of the employer to provide him explanations on the concerns relating to directly or not the perenniality of employment. This request is registered of right to the day order of the next meeting of the work's council. ” (Article L 432-5 of the Labor regulation);
the release of this constrained right of alarm Management to be explained at the time of a plenary session which is convened within a reasonable delay;
if the explanations are considered to be insufficient by the EC, it can draw up a relationship with the possible assistance of an certified public accountant, who will be sent to the auditors and with the administrators of the company. The latter have a one month deadline to bring an answer to the concerns of the EC.

Social activities and cultural

The EC holds the monopoly of the management of the social activities and cultural within the company. The subsidy poured by the employer for this reason does not have a floor, but is at least equal to 0,2% of the wage bill.

In practice, it varies between 0,5 and 5% of the rough wage bill, for an average of 2%.

The EC negotiates advantages near business partners and can itself propose services (coffee machines or distributers of delicacies, hiring of video cassettes or DVD, etc). It also deals with activities concerning the family of the paid one: Christmas trees, summer camps, etc

Site committees and the CEC

The work's council is replaced, in the companies having several establishments, by site committees and a ''' central committee of company '''. In groups (formed together by a dominant company and the companies which it controls), a ''' committee of group ''' supervises the unit. Lastly, in the companies with Community dimension , a ''' European committee ''' can also “cap” the national work's councils.

A Economic and Social Unité can be defined by way of justice or company agreements if several legal companies carry on an linked activity, and consequently requires to apprehend their function in a consolidated way.

The recognition of EU depends on the meeting of various criteria which are of the same importance. EU is characterized by an economic unit and a social unit. The coexistence of these two units is essential so that the EU is carried out. When one of the two units is lacking, the EU cannot be recognized.

The implementation of EU implies the creation of a Site committee by company, and of a central committee of company on the level of the EU.

See too

External bonds

Articles L 143-1 with L 439-24 of the labor regulation
Labor regulation, legislative part
Media THIS Magazine, Information of the work's councils

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