Germany -- Politics and government -- 1918-1933; Germany. Verfassung (1919)
The Constitution sets forth the idea that the economic organization of
the country must pursue two different courses and should therefore have
two different series of organs--the “Workers Councils” and the “Economic
Councils.” This double organization is based on considerations that were
expressed by Member of the Assembly Sinzheimer at the session of the
National Assembly on July 21, as follows: “In economic life there is
both a conflict and a community of interests. The conflict that exists
in our economic life and which it is impossible not to perceive is the
conflict between capital and labour. It is therefore necessary, since the
employers are already represented publicly in Chambers of Commerce, etc.,
that the side of labour should also receive special public representation
which should include all wage-earners and salaried employés. The mission
of this representation should be to express all the interests of the
working class, as such, in an organized manner, through a public organ
of representation. This public organ of representation is the Workers
Council. This Council is a unilateral representation of interests. It has
as its purpose the increase and realization of the economic influence of
the working class. But in economic life there is not only a conflict,
there is also a community of interest. The latter is based on the common
interest in production on the part of both employer and employé. The
Economic Councils have as their mission, in contrast to the Workers
Councils, to realize these common ‘duties of production,’ that are
equally incumbent upon employers and employés. They must satisfy all the
interests of production and bring into co-operation for production all
the elements that participate in it, to increase production, diminish its
costs and to regulate it as far as possible according to considerations
of social good.”
Workers Councils are: Factory Workers Councils, for each establishment;
District Workers Councils, organized for each economic district; and the
National Workers Council, whose authority extends over the whole German
territory. These Councils have as their mission the safeguarding of the
social and economic interests of the workers.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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