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Corporate governance - the way that major businesses are run - has been of in-creasing concern in recent years. Financial scandals in companies like Enron and WorldCom, as well as similar problems in Europe, have resulted in most major countries introducing corporate governance codes. However, these codes need to be seen in relation to long-established national structures of corporate governance, which are often very different - in their forms, in their participants, and even in their purpose. In particular, employee representatives have a clear and important role in some, but no place at all in others.This study looks at governance structures and corporate governance codes in four separate European states: France, the Netherlands, Sweden and the UK. The four represent very different traditions of corporate governance - shareholder value is dominant in the UK, for example, while in the Netherlands companies are to be run in the long-term interest of all those involved. The UK is also the only country of the four where employees are not involved, at least to some degree, at board level.Despite these differences, the study shows that the corporate governance codes that have been introduced in each state are very similar. Indeed, the committees drawing them up, faced with the need to meet the expectations of international investors, have deliberately chosen common solutions. One clear result is that these codes largely neglect the role that employee represen-tatives play at board level. The evidence, presented in the study, is that employee representatives on company boards are overwhelmingly seen as positive. However, in the world of corporate governance codes, they remain a forgotten resource.The study draws together information from four national reports, and, as well as presenting the overall picture, includes executive summaries from each state.

This guide is intended to help people unfamiliar with the German system of labour relations to understand one of its key aspects, the system of employee involvement known as 'codetermination' ('Mitbestimmung' in German). Codetermination is governed by a series of rules set out in legislation and provides employee representatives with clear rights to act in ways that benefit the employees who elected them. Codetermination also requires employee representatives to consider the interests of the business where they work and there is evidence that codetermination brings benefits to the companies in which it is exercised. Codetermination affects decisions at all levels and plays a role in German companies and those who work in them, making it an important element not just of German industrial relations, but also of the German economy and German society. Anyone who wishes to understand the German economy and society better would be well advised also to take time to learn a little about codetermination. The guide is intended for non-Germans encountering the codetermination for the first time. Whether they are managers or investors, trade union officials or elected employee representatives, they are likely to find initially that parts of the system seem unfamiliar and perhaps uniquely German. But on closer examination, it is clear that codetermination has many features in common with other systems of employee involvement elsewhere in Europe. The rules and the structures may differ but the concerns and needs are the same.

Bericht über den alljährlichen Kongreß des Dachverbandes britischer Gewerkschaften TUC im September 1996 sowie über den Parteitag der Labour Party im Oktober 1996 in Blackpool. (AuD-Pls)

This article looks at the experience to date of meetings on European multinational companies, precursors to European works councils, using information from the main organisers, the European Industry Committees, and the participants. It finds that: there are now at least 290 European multinationals where employee representatives have met to talk about the prospect of a European works council. Overwhelmingly it is the national unions who decide who participates in the European level meetings and that, while non-UK unions draw on the statutory representative structures, such as works councils, to select their participants, in the UK the situation is more fluid. Overall around two-thirds of those attending are lay representatives. There are three issues which most meetings cover: the financial structure and plans of the company; a comparison of working conditions and trade union representation in the company's European locations; and the prospects of establishing a European works council. The meetings are about both exchanging information and building a European Works Council, although some Industry Committees focus more clearly on establishing a European Works Council than others. Participants report progress towards works councils, although they also welcome the links made and information shared at meetings. There are difficulties in maintaining links outside the meetings. The biggest single problem is language; people cannot communicate outside the formal sessions. There is also a general feeling among participants that they would like more information and among the organisers that they would like more resources. The key training needs are identified as language training followed by more training on the industrial relations systems in other countries.