09:00 Friday, 13 October 2023

What's next for Berlin tech works councils?

The Berlin Tech Workers Coalition will host the largest English speaking and tech worker-led conference in Germany, together with our trade unions ver.di B+B and IG Metall Berlin.

Friday, 13 October is open for all Works Council members. As a Works Council training per BetrVG 37(6), you can do this training during working hours, and conference fee paid by your employer. Registration is mandatory. Find further instructions here. Email us conference@techworkersberlin.com if you have questions!

Saturday, 14 October is open to all tech workers and will have both a broader focus on social movements, trade union organising and political education. Simply fill out the form below to register for the Saturday portion. Some people will want to attend both portions of conference, while others attend one of them.

Registration

  • October 13 Works council training, register here.
  • October 14 Organizing and networking, fill in the form below

It is the second time we organise this conference, read about the first edition here. Last year participants gathered at IG Metall’s Berlin office, this year’s conference will take place at ver.di’s headquarter in Berlin.

Group photo of Tech Workers Conference from last year

We are bringing 100+ English speaking tech workers from 50+ companies together for a two day conference in Berlin. Year round, we regularly network and stay in touch with each other, so it is an opportunity to celebrate each other’s milestones, successes and learnings over the year.

There will be interactive workshops, discussions, and the opportunity to activate your workplaces. Topics include societal issues like rent, inflation, ecology and practical workplace issues like surveillance, gender pay gap, mass-layoffs and migrant organising.

The conference is open to tech workers of all experiences and engagement levels from beginners to expert. If you are interested in speaking/presenting on a specific topic, please get in touch with us, we have a few slots reamining!

If you have further questions or are interested in attending, you can get in touch with conference@techworkersberlin.com for further info.

13 October Schedule

Time Panel
08:00 ☕️ Morning Check in
09:00 Morning introduction and welcome
12:00 🥙 Lunch including vegetarian/vegan food
13:00 Workshop 1: Works council communication with co-workers in mobile/remote scenarios
13:00 Workshop 2: Legal framework for collaboration between works councils and trade unions
13:00 Workshop 3: Workplace and employee surveillance: legal framework and strategies
14:45 ☕️ Coffee break
15:00 Workshop 4: Works agreements on mobile work: risks and opportunities
15:00 Workshop 5: The works council’s role in workplace downsizing scenarios (mass layoffs)
15:00 Workshop 6: Data Protection in the works council’s office: duties of the works council and its members
17:00 Reflection phase, next steps, end of conference
18:00 Get together

14 October Schedule

Time Panel
10:30 ☕️ Welcoming words
11:15 Interactive activity and setting the stage
12:15 🥙 Lunch including vegetarian/vegan food
13:00 Opening panel and Q/A: Collective bargaining: Success stories from the real world
14:30 Workshop 7: Climate change and tech
14:30 Workshop 8: Transnational organising, challenges and successes
14:30 Workshop 9: Sexism, gender pay gap and how we can win
14:30 Workshop 10: Works Council mobbing and retaliation from management
16:00 Report back and commitmens for future project launches
16:30 Closing and commitmens for future project launches

Venue

ver.di Berlin-Brandenburg, Paula-Thiede-Ufer 10

Code of Conduct

All meetings and communications are covered under the Berlin Code of Conduct. The privacy and safety of our members is important to us. Sharing the identity of members and or taking/sharing photos are strictly forbidden unless express consent is given.

Get involved! @TechWorkersBER