Der Betriebsrat im Metaverse (Volume 7) (English shop)

Eine rechtliche Analyse der Gestaltungsmöglichkeiten digitaler Räume wie dem Metaverse unter dem Betriebsverfassungsgesetz

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Digitalisation is transforming not only the world of work but also the foundations of workplace codetermination. Since the coronavirus pandemic at the latest, workplace communication, collaboration and decision-making processes have increasingly shifted into virtual space. With the metaverse and other virtual working environments, establishments are now emerging in which employers, employees and works councils interact with one another exclusively in digital form.

This development also raises questions of works constitution law:
Can the traditional concept of the establishment be transferred to purely digital establishment structures? How can works council activity be organised democratically, effectively and in compliance with the law under conditions of permanent digitality? And what requirements does the Works Constitution Act impose on elections, meetings and the passing of resolutions in digital spaces?

The present study takes up the call formulated by Karl-Georg Loritz for a “systematisation that advances our understanding of the changes” in works constitution law in the digital age. Using the example of the metaverse and other virtual working environments, it analyses the effects of digitalisation on the works constitution and develops a doctrinal foundation for the digital establishment. In doing so, it shows to what extent current works constitution law is already equal to the challenges of virtual working worlds and where there is a need for legislative adjustment.