EU Law under Construction: Sustainability, Stakeholders and the Relevance of Employee Consultation

Stakeholder consultation is rapidly becoming a buzzword in recent EU legislation including the CSDDD. This concept is often described in rather broad terms and therefore it is left to companies how this can best be realised. In this chapter we examine various ways how to realise stakeholder consultation how to arrange such consultation. We argue that even where stakeholder consultation is to be understood broadly, the consultative structures and whistleblowing mechanisms that are already available for workers consultation, can play a crucial role. Workers, whether employed by the company, its subsidiaries or its business partners, are often the first to become aware of potential adverse impacts in terms of sustainability, human rights or the environment and are the eyes and ears on the ground. Therefore, it is important to ensure that all workers in the chain of activities, not only those employed by the company but also by its subsidiaries and business partners, will have access to consultation platforms and at least be able to share relevant information with worker representatives. The European Works Council offers an example in point of such a representative forum which can play a significant role in this regard. As the European Works Council Directive is currently under review, this is a good time to make necessary changes to reflect the above. Some examples in national law are discussed to illustrate potential amendments which could be made to the Directive. Perhaps the most important take-away from our analysis is that workers are not only a crucial category of stakeholders in their own right, but also can play a crucial role through already existing mechanisms and platforms in ensuring that human and environmental rights of others are respected.