Article by Dr Christian Bloth in the Deutscher AnwaltSpiegel

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Holding companies and group works councils: An important decision for foreign groups with domestic holding companies

Foreign groups often hold their shareholdings in Germany – primarily for tax reasons – through a domestic group holding company. The function of such a holding company is frequently limited to holding the shareholdings. Operational management – in the sense of strategic decisions, but also decisions on personnel and social matters – remains with the foreign companies. Within matrix structures, these are not direct shareholders of the domestic companies.

In such cases, is a group works council required to be established at the domestic pure (financial) holding company? And if not – does this result in a reduction in co-determination, particularly on issues for which a group works council would have exclusive responsibility?

The Federal Labour Court (BAG) addressed
this issue in its ruling of 23 May 2018, ref. 7 ABR 60/16.

Read more about this here: https://www.deutscheranwaltspiegel.de/konzernbetriebsrat-stopp-durch-landesgrenze/#more-6960

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