: THE INSTITUTE OF ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RESEARCH (WSI)
The Institute of Economic and Social Research (WSI) is an independent academic institute within the Hans-Böckler-Foundation, a non-profit organisation fostering co-determination and promoting research and academic study on behalf of the German Confederation of Trade Unions (DGB).
Since it was founded in 1946, the institute's focus has always been on the improvement of life chances, on social justice and fair working and living conditions. Economists, sociologists, political scientists and law scholars work on social, economic and labour market policy issues. On the basis of their analyses, researchers elaborate policy proposals aimed at overcoming labour market restrictions and social problems to the benefit of employees.
Source: WSI
Key Research Topics
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Labour market and working conditions
In recent years, labour market policy has been challenged by huge structural changes, most of all by the increase in non-standard and often also precarious forms of employment. Moreover, quality of work has changed – growing job-related stress being one major example.
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Wage policy, collective bargaining and industrial relations
Wage policy
Wage policy, collective bargaining policy and industrial relations have been the main fields of expertise in WSI research and public policy advice for decades.
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Social inequality, social (des-)integration and social policy
Research is concerned with welfare state and social policy changes, structural causes for the increase in social inequality, and the search for possibilities to foster a fairer distribution of life chances.
The research area monitors economic, social and political developments on the European level and evaluates the consequences, risks and opportunities for employees, households, firms and the future of the welfare state.
Malagardē, Athēna / Sengayrac, Simon-Pierre / Schulten, Thorsten
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The minimum wage in Greece, France and Germany
The study provides a comparative overview of the new mechanism for setting the statutory minimum wage in Greece in relation to the French and German models.
Müller, Torsten / Schulten, Thorsten
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After Landmark EU Court Judgement: The EU Minimum Wages Directive Is Alive and Kicking
The landmark ruling validates the directive's approach to adequate wages and collective bargaining, dealing only minor setbacks to its implementation across Europe.
Eurofound 2025
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Digitalisation of social protection
The report focuses on the digitalisation of front- and back-office processes in monetary social benefits. The automation removes the need to apply and prevents non-take-up, but people in atypical situations are often excluded from digital processes.
Löw, Neva / Pichl, Maximilian
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Climate Refugees Are Already Here — And Democracy Hangs In The Balance
The climate crisis and global migration are closely linked. Socio-ecological transformation and advocacy for the right not to have to leave can only succeed through preserving and expanding democratic spaces.
Schulten, Thorsten / Lübker, Malte
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Germany’s Minimum Wage Hike In Accordance With The European Minimum Wage Directive
The German Minimum Wage Commission has, for the first time, recognised 60 % of the median wage as a formal reference point for the statutory minimum – a decisive policy shift bringing Germany into line with the EU Minimum Wage Directive.
Erol, Şerife / Kärcher, Anneliese / Schulten, Thorsten / Walser, Manfred
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Germany’s Subcontracting Ban in the Meat Industry
The European Parliament is preparing a report on abusive subcontracting practices across the EU. The experience in the German meat industry has demonstrated that a ban on subcontracting can be a suitable instrument to combat extreme forms of exploitation.
The authors show that voluntary women’s quotas in companies are linked to more egalitarian gender beliefs among employees. In conclusion, the findings indicate that policy feedback mechanisms operate not only at the national but also at the workplace level.
Höpner, Martin / Schmidt, Susanne K. / Seikel, Daniel
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Asymmetry resolved? Revisiting negative and positive European integration
Is Fritz W. Scharpf's influential theory of an institutional asymmetry between negative and positive integration in the European Union still relevant? The authors find that the asymmetry persists, albeit in a nuanced way.
Drawing on nationally representative panel data spanning the years 2019–2023, the article investigates the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on subjective well-being of the solo self-employed and employees in Germany.
The anaysis of past and recent reforms in German pension and labour market policies shows: While social insurance schemes still dominate the German welfare system overall, liberal means-tested elements are getting stronger.
Schulten, Thorsten
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Collective bargaining and public procurement in Germany
Public procurement is of great economic importance and provides the state with considerable market power. The paper analyzes the current status of labour clauses in regional public procurement laws and the latest discussions on a new national procurement act for public contracts at federal level in Germany.
Many EU countries are raising minimum wages significantly in 2025, boosting purchasing power amid falling inflation. Driven by the EU Minimum Wage Directive, this trend continues—though for Germany, a structural increase is still necessary to make progress towards an adequate minimum wage.
Arnholtz, Jens / Seikel, Daniel
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Promoting Social Europe by reversing liberalisation?
The revision of the Posting of Workers Directive was supposed to be a milestone for a more social Europe. But a new study shows: Implementation in the member states fell short of expectations. The authors ask why MS that actively pushed for the revision did not exploit the new regulatory possibilities further. In addition to presenting comparative data on national implementation, they conduct in-depth case studies of countries that supported the revision at the EU level (Denmark, Finland, Germany).
Thorsten Schulten and the WSI Collective Agreement Archive
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ANNUAL REPORT OF THE WSI COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT ARCHIVE
The new report provides an overview of collective bargaining agreements by industry and region, branch-level minimum wages, and collective bargaining regulations on workloads and working hours.
Hünefeld, Lena / Meyer, Sophie-Charlotte / Erol, Serife / Ahlers, Elke
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Work intensity: identification and analysis of key determinants
The article investigates determinants of work intensity, especially against the background of increasing processes of work acceleration and numerous indications that high work intensity can pose a health risk for employees.
Müller, Torsten / Schulten, Thorsten
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The road to 80 % collective bargaining coverage
The Directive on Adequate Minimum Wages obliges the EU Member States with collective bargaining coverage of below 80 % to establish action plans to promote collective bargaining. The Policy Brief presents possible concrete measures.
Interview with Daniel Seikel, 24.01.2025
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THE EUROPEAN TAILWIND FOR POVERTY-PROOF MINIMUM WAGES WOULD BE GONE
On January 14, the Advocate General at the ECJ recommended that the EU minimum wage directive be annulled. How likely is it that the judges will follow his vote? And what would the consequences be?
