Audit Expectations in Works Councils

Many industrialized countries have introduced mechanisms to institutionalize communication between employers and labour. One such mechanism is the creation of works councils. In many countries, these works councils receive information about the company, often including accounting data. In Belgium, official regulations require that works councils should receive extensive financial and nonfinancial data. To guarantee the reliability of this information, the law provides for the intervention of an auditor to certify the information and to guarantee its completeness. However, this auditor usually also serves as the commissaire, the statutory auditor who certifies the financial statements on behalf of the shareholders. This raises the question whether the labour representatives in the works councils have faith in the auditor's impartiality. This article reports how the employees' representatives in the works council view the role of auditors and their performance. The article also concludes that cultural differences and company size both have a significant impact on industrial relations.