Effects of works councils on firm-provided further training in Germany

Abstract

"Unions are an important indicator of various measures of firm performance in Anglo-Saxon countries. The same is true for the German analogue of the workplace union, the works council. Using German establishment data, I examine the impact of works councils on further training. I employ pooled logit and count-data models to analyse the further training activity and intensity of German firms. Because the treatment variable may suffer from endogeneity, I also adopt linear and nonlinear instrumental variable techniques. The analysis reveals a positive impact of works councils on firm-provided training and provides slightly weaker evidence for firm-size differentials in workplace representation. I conclude that enhanced management-employee relations foster the training efforts of firms." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Cite article

Stegmaier, J. (2012): Effects of works councils on firm-provided further training in Germany. In: British Journal of Industrial Relations, Vol. 50, No. 4, p. 667-689. DOI:10.1111/j.1467-8543.2012.00895.x