Relationships with employee representatives and collective bargaining

The option to merge employee representative bodies with majority agreement, extension of the scope of the unique employee representative body, a new structure for compulsory negotiations, introduction of new operating rules for employee representative bodies, creation of new rights for union representatives. The impetus behind a number of changes, the recent “Rebsamen” act aims to boost social dialogue in France by simplifying it. In a climate where profound, potentially disruptive changes are taking place within companies, the quality of the working environment, which is most notably driven by the quality of the social dialogue, is undoubtedly a key issue. So, how can you ensure your practices comply with the operating rules in force? How can you manage and get the best out of your relationships with employee representatives? How can you capitalise on the new social legislation to develop a suitable and effective negotiation strategy? How can you take advantage of the opportunities provided by social reform to rekindle your employees’ interest in social dialogue? In order to achieve the dual goals of economic performance and employee satisfaction, these key questions must be tackled as quickly as possible.

With their expertise in these matters, our specialist employment and social welfare lawyers will explain the challenges presented by this specific domain and help you to identify and implement the changes they involve. They will draw upon their significant experience in this area of law to guide you in the ongoing management of rights, the demands put forward by those representing your employees and your obligations to them. At the same time, they will help you to implement plans that are likely to have an impact on working conditions and on the individual or collective status of employees. In practical terms, they will assist with setting up employee representative bodies, both nationally and internationally (European works councils), as well as with managing your relationships with organisations representing employees, and with the experts they employ. They are able to provide assistance for collective bargainings at company, industry and group level, for dealing with collective disputes and litigation brought by employee representatives (works council/employee representative elections and union appointments), or for managing your relationship with your company’s Health, Safety and Working Conditions Committee (HSWCC). Their pragmatism and familiarity with the issues you face enable them to help you make best use of the current law to boost the enthusiasm of your workforce and rekindle their interest in social dialogue.