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: IG Metall floats idea of four-day week at Volkswagen
Since Volkswagen's shock announcement last Thursday of likely redundancies and plant closures in Germany for its flagship VW brand, trade unions and politicians have been bracing themselves for...
9 September 2024
Germany: battle for jobs in the offing at Volkswagen
The iconic German carmaker has sparked fury among employees and staff representatives by announcing the possible closure of factories in Germany, the termination of the job guarantee agreement and...
5 September 2024
Germany: tax incentives to get more people working
On 17 July, Germany's federal government adopted an "initiative for economic growth" comprising 49 measures, some of which are designed to make it easier for certain groups, such as part-time...
2 September 2024
Germany: new definition of salaries for works council members
Following votes in the Bundestag (28 June) and Bundesrat (5 July), the draft 'second law amending the law on the organisation of companies' (BetrVG) has been definitively adopted, marking the...
18 July 2024
Germany: 11% of companies offer a four-day week
According to a survey carried out jointly by Randstad’s German subsidiary and the IfO Institute for Economic Research in Munich among a panel of 1,000 human resources managers, one German...
17 July 2024
Austria: a new law extends the legal framework surrounding teleworking
Austria’s Parliament has just passed a new law that makes the rules governing teleworking more flexible and more precise. Drawing on IT advances, teleworking can now be done from any location with...
4 July 2024
Germany: ground-breaking collective agreement and 6.85% salary increase for the chemical sector
On 27 June 2024 Germany’s chemical sector social partners: the IG BCE trade union and the BAVC employers’ body, signed a new collective agreement spanning 20 months until February...
4 July 2024
Germany: mixed interim results for the four-day week pilot project
Since February 2024, 45 German companies have been testing the four-day working week as part of a project launched by the consultancy firm Intraprenör, which has just published an interim...
3 July 2024
Germany: decline of codetermination continues, amid array of methods to circumvent practice (study)
The Institute for Codetermination and Corporate Governance (IMU), part of the Hans Böckler trade union foundation, has just published a study on the erosion of codetermination in Germany. In...
14 June 2024
Germany: measures outlined to foster work after retirement
Following the adoption of a reform designed to maintain pension levels at 48% of average wages beyond 2025, Hubertus Heil, Germany's minister for labour and social affairs, has outlined measures...
Germany: companies adjust to cannabis legalisation
Since 1 April, recreational cannabis has been legal for adults in Germany. In addition, limited production by associations will be possible from 1 July 2024. Although legal, cannabis still has...
10 June 2024
Germany: the headache of corporate initiatives against the far right
In the highly regulated world of Germany's social market economy, companies have generally avoided taking political positions externally and, even more so, internally. But the strong rise of the...
29 April 2024
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