Brexit’s impact on transnational employee representation. Regulatory changes and contested futures of European Works Councils

Witzak, Patrick, Hertwig, Markus, Frisone, Anna, Hauptmeier, Marco ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6755-3089, Kahmann, Marcus and Lines, Louis G. T. 2026. Brexit’s impact on transnational employee representation. Regulatory changes and contested futures of European Works Councils. European Journal of Industrial Relations 10.1177/09596801261425584

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Abstract

This study examines how Brexit reshaped the institutional foundations of European Works Councils (EWCs). Using historical institutionalism, the analysis conceptualises Brexit as a critical juncture that revealed and accelerated existing institutional dynamics. Drawing on 64 company cases, including 16 in-depth studies, it identifies five developmental outcomes – stability, limitation, exclusion, extinction and innovation/expansion. Most EWCs maintained stability through negotiated adaptation, while others experienced limitations, exclusion or innovation. Outcomes were mainly influenced by management strategies and orientations, national employment relations systems and transnational employee coordination. The findings show how macro-level institutional disruptions translate into negotiated meso-level institutional recomposition.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	In Press
Schools:	Schools > Business (Including Economics)
Publisher:	SAGE Publications
ISSN:	0959-6801
Last Modified:	11 Mar 2026 17:01
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/185704

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