Works Councils and Organizational Gender Policies in Germany

Uwe Jirjahn and Jens Mohrenweiser

No 12344, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: While education and labor force participation of women have been increased, there is still a substantial gender gap in labor market opportunities. This gives rise to the question of what factors lead employers to promote work-family balance and gender equality. We address this question by examining the influence of works councils on the gender policies of establishments in Germany. Using data of the IAB Establishment Panel, we find that the incidence of a works council is associated with an increased likelihood that an establishment provides family-friendly practices and promotes equal opportunities of men and women. This finding also holds in a recursive multivariate probit model that accounts for potential endogeneity of works council incidence.

Keywords: work-family balance; gender equality; works councils; non-union employee representation; equal opportunities; organizational gender policies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J13 J16 J52 J53 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 38 pages
Date: 2019-05
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-eur and nep-lab
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Published - revised version published in: British Journal of Industrial Relations, 2021, 59 (4), 1020-1048

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Related works:
Journal Article: Works councils and organizational gender policies in Germany (2021)
Working Paper: Works Councils and Organizational Gender Policies in Germany (2019)
Working Paper: Works Councils and Organizational Gender Policies in Germany (2019)
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