New Agreement on the European Works Council of GlaxoSmithKline

A new EWC agreement was signed for GlaxoSmithKline on 7th September 2011 in London, concluding discussions which had already begun in 2009. Although it maintains the "joint-body" structure composed of employer and employee representatives, in detail it shows however substantial improvements. As far as British standards go, it can definitely serve as a model.
The definition of information and consultation corresponds to the new legal situation; however the delay for rendering an opinion has been limited to ten days. The procedure takes place before the final decision of central management on the implementation of a measure. The steering committee will even be informed, should only one single country be concerned. The agreement plans time-off for all EWC members, so that they can inform employees from their own country and collect their opinion. This is particularly important for countries where there are no works councils