The Effectiveness of Co-Determination Laws in Cooperative and Adversarial Employment Relations: When does Regulation Bite?

The German Codetermination Law grants workers of establishments with 200 or more employees the right to have a works councillor fully exempted from his regular job while still being paid his regular salary. We analyze theoretically and empirically how this de jure right to paid leave of absence translates into practice and explicitly take into account the nature of the industrial relations participation regime. We find the right of exemption to make no difference in cooperative employment relations, but to develop its bite in adversarial relations, i.e. when – without legal enforcement – the legislator’s intent would not be realized.