German law mandates employee representation on supervisory boards
The number of representatives varies by the size of the firm and industry, with special provisions for coal and steel industries
German firms have a two-tiered board structure
The supervisory board (Aufsichtsrat) is the higher ranked board
It has the responsibility to control managerial performance and appoint top managers
The lower managing board (Vorstund) runs the firm on a day-to-day basis
Employee representatives to the supervisory board are elected proportionately from the blue and white collar workforce
The law reserves two or three seats for unions