We attach great importance to smooth and effective consultation with Works Councils and unions. We are committed to providing employee representatives with detailed briefings on our plans at an early stage, to enable them to do their job effectively.

In the case of cross-border and cross-company reorganisation plans, the social consultation process starts at European Works Council level. Senior management – including the Group CEO and COO – inform the Council about the company’s strategy and the social impact with regard to their area of responsibility. From there, the consultation process cascades down to local bodies in the relevant businesses and countries.

The European Works Council is largely made up of members from the Benelux countries, who account for the vast majority of the seats. The remaining representatives come from France, Germany, Ireland, and Poland. The Council also hopes to include people from countries that do not currently have their own representatives. Social consultation is less established in countries like Turkey than it is in Western Europe. We intend to open up the European Works Council to as many of the countries in which Fortis is active as possible.