Thomas Schnee
Freelance
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
Germany: legal battle at Tesla ahead of works council election
The Frankfurt/Oder labour court has postponed a mid-November hearing in the case between the IG Metall union and Michaela Schmitz, employee representative and head of the works council at the...
28 October 2025
Austria: Social Affairs Committee green-lights improved redundancy conditions for self-employed workers
On 8 October 2025, the Social Affairs Committee of the Austrian National Council, the country’s lower house of parliament, approved new redundancy rules for self-employed workers, paving the...
- HR
- News brief
14 October 2025
Switzerland: National Council relaxes remote work rules and introduces right to disconnect
Swiss federal lawmakers have voted by a wide margin to extend the framework governing remote working, aiming to "better reflect the opportunities offered by digitalisation" and promote a healthier...
17 October 2025
Germany: EU pay transparency directive to force companies to ‘get tough’
Germany introduced a pay transparency law in 2017, meaning companies are already somewhat familiar with the issue. However, the broader scope and stricter requirements of the EU directive, the...
24 October 2025
Latest articles by Thomas Schnee
Germany: real wages are falling as sectors gear up for 2023 wage negotiations
It is too early to know whether salary increases negotiated in autumn 2022 in the major Chemicals and Metals sectors (+6.5%, +8.5% respectively over two years plus €3,000 each) will help to...
29 November 2022
Germany: growing shortage of tech and science experts (study)
The renowned German Economic Institute (IW) in Cologne has published its annual study on the situation for so-called “MINT” – mathematics, information technology, natural...
28 November 2022
Germany: 8.5% pay rise and €3,000 “anti-inflation” bonus in metal sector
The social partners in the metal industry of the German state of Baden-Württemberg have struck an agreement on a two-part wage increase of 8.5% and a one-off tax-free bonus of €3,000, to take...
18 November 2022
Austria: 7.44% pay rise in metal industry
The social partners in the largest branch of Austria’s metal industry – the business organisation Metaltechnology Austria (FMTI) and the PRO-GE and GPA trade unions – have struck...
7 November 2022
Germany: ground-breaking agreement in the retail sector signed between Ver.Di and H&M
The German services sector trade union Ver.Di and the German subsidiary of the Swedish clothing chain, Hennes & Mauritz have signed a company agreement that is proving to be unique in...
4 November 2022
Germany: first “social partnership model” for company pensions launched in energy sector
Social partners representing a portion of the companies in Germany's energy sector struck an agreement at the end of October on an all-new model for company pensions, dubbed a "social partnership...
2 November 2022
Germany: draft law for €12 minimum wage tabled
An increase in Germany’s minimum wage to €12 per hour – a central campaign pledge of the new chancellor Olaf Scholz – appears to be in the offing, as it is the first draft...
28 January 2022
Germany: law on due diligence in supply chains adopted by the Bundestag
Passed by the Bundestag on Friday 11 June, the 'Act on Corporate Due Diligence Obligations in Supply Chains' will come into force in two stages from 2023. From now on, companies headquartered in...
Germany: federal government confirms adoption of controversial draft legislation on corporate due diligence ahead of the 2021 elections
On 14 July, Federal Ministers of Economic Cooperation and Development, and Labour and Social Affairs, Gerd Müller and Hubertus Heil respectively, confirmed that the draft law on...
- HR
- CSR
- News brief
15 July 2020
What you absolutely must read this week
The essential content of the week selected by the editorial team.
Italy: decree-law adopted to increase workplace safety
On 28 October, the Italian cabinet adopted a decree-law on health and safety at work, aimed at preventing and reducing accidents. The text addresses both the powers and actions of supervisory...
4 November 2025
Romania: parents of children with disabilities granted up to eight days of remote work per month
On 9 October, the Romanian parliament adopted a bill aiming to bolster support for parents of children with disabilities up to the age of 18. The legislation, which came into force on 12 October...
4 November 2025
Carrefour and UNI Global Union renew global agreement on promoting social dialogue and diversity
On 17 October, Carrefour, one of the world’s largest retailers, with nearly 500,000 employees worldwide, and global union federation UNI Global Union renewed their global agreement on...
3 November 2025
mind RH analysis – Initial findings from CSRD social indicators
In 2025, for the first time, the universal registration documents of major European companies contain the sustainability reporting required by the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive...
31 October 2025
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
mind RH analysis – Initial findings from CSRD social indicators
In 2025, for the first time, the universal registration documents of major European companies contain the sustainability reporting required by the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive...
31 October 2025
2
Netherlands: ING cites AI as it plans to cut around 950 jobs
Dutch bank ING has informed the employment agency UWV that it may cut around 950 jobs by 31 December 2026. In its notification on 20 October, the lender said the planned reductions stem partly...
30 October 2025
3
EU: omnibus bill stalls in parliament
On 22 October, members of the European Parliament narrowly voted against a negotiating mandate that would have opened trilogue talks on the omnibus directive, which seeks to dilute the corporate...
- HR
- CSR
- News brief
23 October 2025
4
EU: Omnibus Directive clears key milestone in European Parliament
On 13 October, the European Parliament’s position on the Omnibus Directive was approved by its Committee on Legal Affairs by 17 votes to six. Regarding due diligence rules, the report...
- HR
- CSR
- News brief
13 October 2025
5
Belgium: social partners sign agreement on end-of-career schemes
Brought together in the National Labour Council (CNT), the Belgian social partners reached an agreement on 21 October on the end-of-career scheme, putting an end to several months of negotiations...
- HR
- CSR
- News brief
23 October 2025
6
France: generative AI and older workers central to BPCE’s skills management strategy
On 17 July 2025, BPCE and its trade unions signed a second agreement on jobs and career management within the banking group. The text places generative artificial intelligence at the core of its...
15 October 2025