Thomas Schnee
Correspondent in GermanyAs a Berlin correspondent for the French and Swiss press since the late 1990s, I cover a wide range of economic, political and social issues, with a particular focus on the German business and labour market. My areas of interest include co-determination, digitalisation, demographics and ESG/DEI policies.
Expertise
As a correspondent in Berlin for the French and Swiss press since the late 1990s, I cover a wide range of economic, political and social issues, with a particular focus on the German business world and labour market. My areas of interest include co-management, digitalisation, demographics and ESG/DEI policies.
Most read articles by Thomas Schnee
Oliver Dietrich (IG Metall): “The advent of AI can be a means of deepening social partnership within companies”
In Germany, trade unions want to influence how AI is deployed in companies. Oliver Dietrich is an AI project manager at the regional office of the IG Metall trade union in North Rhine-Westphalia...
21 January 2026
Germany: collective bargaining negotiations begin in chemical industry
Collective bargaining talks in Germany’s chemical and pharmaceutical industries are due to open this week, covering nearly 580,000 employees across around 1,700 companies. With the sector facing...
3 February 2026
Germany: government seeks to facilitate immigration of skilled Indian workers
During a visit to India earlier this week, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz addressed the strategic importance of attracting Indian workers to Germany, signing a series of cooperation agreements...
15 January 2026
Germany: Chancellor prepares ground for working time law reform
Since mid-January 2026, senior figures in the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), led by Chancellor Friedrich Merz, have reopened debate over Germany’s working time legislation. The party’s...
26 January 2026
Latest articles by Thomas Schnee
Germany: law passed to create ‘apprenticeship guarantee’ and ‘qualification allowance’
As part of its national strategy to attract and train a larger skilled workforce, and following the passing on Friday 23 June of its new law on economic immigration, the Bundestag also passed a...
26 June 2023
Germany: Bundestag passes law on immigration for skilled workers
On Friday 23 June, the Bundestag passed its much-awaited Immigration Act for Skilled Workers (Fachkräfteeinwanderungsgesetz). The new legislation takes inspiration from the Canadian points-based...
23 June 2023
Germany: complaint filed against VW, BMW, & Mercedes Benz for breaching human rights due diligence obligations in Xinjiang
On 21 June the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) confirmed that it had filed a complaint against Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes Benz, accusing them of failing to exercise...
Germany: pioneering employee mental health project at mutual insurance group DEVK Versicherungen
‘Mental health: stop the taboo’ is the title of the corporate health management (CHM) project that the German mutual insurance group DEVK Versicherungen implemented in 2022, earning it a...
6 June 2023
Germany: ruling confirms lower wages for temporary workers
Germany's Federal Labour Court (BAG) has rejected a complaint brought by a temporary warehouse worker at a major clothing retailer, who was seeking pay equal to that of her colleagues on permanent...
5 June 2023
In Berlin, the European Trade Union Confederation advocates for a four-day week
Combating the effects of inflation on wages, fighting for more collective agreements to be signed in all EU countries, but also pushing the option of a four-day working week. Such were the...
30 May 2023
Germany: whistleblower legislation finally adopted
La Commission de conciliation parlementaire entre le Bundesrat (Länder) et le Bundestag (députés) s'est accordée sur le projet de loi de protection des lanceurs d'alerte qui a été voté par les...
- HR
- News
16 May 2023
Germany: Helaba Bank hands staff a monthly sustainability bonus
German bank Helaba, the parent company of savings banks in the German state of Hesse, has announced that it will pay a monthly sustainability bonus (Nachhaltigkeitsprämie) to its 6,300...
24 April 2023
Germany: companies failing to meet required proportion of employees with disabilities to be taxed more heavily
The Bundestag has passed a law that aims to foster better integration of people with disabilities in the German labour market. Adopted by the house on Thursday 20 April, the new text abolishes the...
- HR
- CSR
- News brief
21 April 2023
Germany: a bill centred on electronic recording of working time
On 19 April, the content of the long-awaited bill on compulsory time recording was leaked to the German media. Subject matter experts from the Federal Ministry of Labour have prepared a system...
20 April 2023
Germany: court ruling puts downward pressure on wages of works council employee representatives
A ruling on 10 January 2023 by Germany’s highest court, the Federal Court of Justice, means the career and salary evaluation practices that employers use for employees who have switched to the...
19 April 2023
Germany: IG Metall seeking to negotiate a four-day week in the steel industry
Almost 40 years after the protracted strike action that gradually led to the introduction in 1995 of the 35-hour working week in the German metal industry, the IG Metall trade union has announced...
6 April 2023
What you absolutely must read this week
The essential content of the week selected by the editorial team.
EU: social partners split over competitiveness and action on job quality
The European Trade Union Confederation and BusinessEurope have published their response to the consultation document on the European Commission's upcoming EU quality jobs initiative. The two...
4 February 2026
2026 TRENDS — Social dialogue, a major challenge in the deployment of AI in companies
mind RH is analysing the trends that will shape 2026. Artificial intelligence is emerging as a force that goes far beyond efficiency gains and productivity improvements. It is reshaping tasks...
4 February 2026
The major trends of 2026
New regulations coming into force, economic uncertainty, evolving skills requirements… More than ever, the HR function will play a strategic role within organizations in 2026. mind HR...
3 February 2026
Germany: collective bargaining negotiations begin in chemical industry
Collective bargaining talks in Germany’s chemical and pharmaceutical industries are due to open this week, covering nearly 580,000 employees across around 1,700 companies. With the sector facing...
3 February 2026
Most viewed articles of the month on mind HR
What readers clicked on the most last month.
What readers clicked on the most last month.
1
Oliver Dietrich (IG Metall): “The advent of AI can be a means of deepening social partnership within companies”
In Germany, trade unions want to influence how AI is deployed in companies. Oliver Dietrich is an AI project manager at the regional office of the IG Metall trade union in North Rhine-Westphalia...
21 January 2026
2
Germany: collective bargaining negotiations begin in chemical industry
Collective bargaining talks in Germany’s chemical and pharmaceutical industries are due to open this week, covering nearly 580,000 employees across around 1,700 companies. With the sector facing...
3 February 2026
3
EU: social partners split over competitiveness and action on job quality
The European Trade Union Confederation and BusinessEurope have published their response to the consultation document on the European Commission's upcoming EU quality jobs initiative. The two...
4 February 2026
4
Italy: collective agreement for rubber and plastics sector focuses on new skills
A month ahead of schedule, the Federazione Gomma Plastica employers' organisation and the Filctem-Cgil, Femca-Cisl and Uiltec trade unions have renewed the collective agreement for the rubber and...
5 January 2026
5
Italy: new generational renewal agreement penned at UniCredit
The agreement signed on 30 December by UniCredit, Italy’s second-largest banking group, with the Fabi, First-Cisl, Fisac-Cgil, Uilca and Unisin trade unions aims to continue generational...
15 January 2026
6
France: social partner talks extend far beyond contractual terminations
After a false start on 3 December, French social partners resumed talks on 7 January 2026 on potential changes to the unemployment insurance agreement, including the rules governing compensation...
12 January 2026