Czech Republic
Key Facts
| Population | 10,507,000 |
|---|---|
| Collective Bargaining Coverage | 41% |
| Proportion of Employees in Unions | 17% |
| Principal Level of Collective Bargaining |
company |
| Workplace Representation |
union (or works council) |
| Board-level Representation |
yes: state-owned and private companies |
| Company Board Structure |
dualistic |
Trade Union
ČMKOS is the dominant union confederation in the Czech Republic, although there are others. Overall around a sixth of all employees are union members.
more ...Collective Bargaining
Around 40% of employees in the Czech Republic are covered by collective bargaining, most through company level negotiations, although in many companies there is no bargaining at all. Industry level agreements cover some industries and following legal changes in 2005 they can again be extended more widely.
more ...Workplace Representation
The local union grouping is still the main way employees are represented at the workplace. In addition, a works council, which has slightly fewer rights, can be set up. Rules which said that a works council had to be dissolved if a local union was established were declared to be unconstitutional in 2008. In practice works councils are rare. In most cases there is either a union or nothing.
more ...Board-level Representation
Employees have a third of the seats on the supervisory board of medium and larger-sized public limited companies.
more ...European-level Representation
Most representatives in European bodies are chosen by joint meetings of employees’ representatives – trade unionists and works council members – where they exist. But board level representatives for a European Company are chosen in the same way as for a national company – through election by the employees.
more ...Health and Safety
Occupational health and safety is central to collective agreements.
more ...Financial Participation
Unlike many other eastern European countries, employee ownership as a form of employee financial participation enjoyed no special treatment in the privatization process and consequently plays no significant role in the ownership structure of the Czech economy. Profit sharing schemes are somewhat more common.1
more ...