Overview

A works council if a form of legally recognised organised worker representation in Germany where employees elect their own colleagues to represent their interests to management. Works councils benefit workers by advocating for safe conditions, fair treatment, equality in hiring, and transparency against unfair termination. One of the main difficulties for employees who want to found a works council is the process of navigating complicated German employment law. Without the help of a union employee who has a specialist knowledge of these processes, it's nearly impossible. On top of that, many of Germany's young workers don't speak fluent German, which excludes them from this process as little information is provided in English. Workerise aims to support the works council founding process by clearly laying out the steps that employees must follow to form a works council in multiple languages. Each step is linked the relevant law. Employees can invite their colleagues to their team on the app, where they can see a timeline of tasks that they need to do. There will also be helpful resources about the laws, organising tips, the importance of privacy, and information for the committees that will form during this process. It will remind users of next steps, making sure that all procedure is correctly followed on time. Workerise will encourage employees to join a union where they can get even more support. This application is ideally a tool that union employees can recommend to their members. This project was created in close collaboration with unions. The prototype is on track to launch in 2021.