Facts & Figures

In September 1994 when the EWC Directive was adopted, 46 companies had already established 49 EWCs. Of these 49 EWCs there are 37 that still exist in 2005. The other established EWCs no longer exist because of company mergers or takeovers. By 2007, 972 EWCs had been created of which 833 still exist

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The Directive aimed to encourage the conclusion of voluntary social partner agreements as a method of creating EWCs. Article 13 of the Directive exempted all companies that had set up an EWC based on an agreement before 22 September 1996, the date on which the national transpositions of the Directive came into force. This possibility proved to be a strong incentive for setting up EWCs.

In the year 1995 alone, the number of existing EWCs doubled from 37 to 80. The 323 EWCs set up in 1996 illustrate the incentive effect of Article 13 of the EWC Directive on the number of companies with EWCs. In the following ten years the number of companies having established EWCs doubled again, but much more gradually compared to 1996. Consequently, the progress made in establishing new EWCs was for many years underestimated.

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Half of the existing EWCs have built up 10 years or more of practical experience. In 2006, 41% of the EWCs will have existed for 10 years, while another 10% will have existed for more than 10 years. In 2007 already 441 existed for 10 or more years. Important experiences have also been accumulated among 31% of the EWCs that have existed from 6 to 9 years.

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