Labor and Employment Law Issues in the Daimler-Chrysler Merger

Abstract:     
This chapter, which is part of a book exploring various issues that can arise in multinational corporate deals, explores the labor issues implicated in the Daimler-Chrysler merger. The potential combination of two major firms raises a host of labor and employment issues, especially when those companies are located in countries with very different legal regimes. These issues become especially acute when multiple unions, with different approaches to labor relations, represent workers. The role that unions play in the workplace can often force companies to take extra steps and consider alternate strategies, in both the pre- and post-merger time periods. Even when there are no unions on the scene, legal protections for individual employees require companies to tread very carefully when considering how to restructure their operations and workforces. Further complicating these issues are the substantial differences that can exist between countries’ approach to labor and employment regulation. The Daimler-Chrysler merger is an apt example of this issue because the United States’ and Germany’s approaches to labor relations, and to a lesser extent other employment laws, are near-polar opposites of each other. These types of differences can make an international merger quite complex and require employers, employees, and unions involved in such a transaction to be mindful of the many potential legal pitfalls that accompany a merger and its aftermath.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 25

Keywords: union, collective bargaining, employee voice, merger, international employment, corporate representation

JEL Classification: K31, K33, K22, J51

Accepted Paper Series