Right-Wing Worker Slates Gain Ground as German Works Council Elections Approach

Hans-Böckler-Stiftung research reveals how the far-right ‘Zentrum’ list and AfD are challenging traditional co-determination in German factories and offices.

A research team backed by the Hans-Böckler-Stiftung is tracking a political shift inside German factories and offices. Academics Ulrich Brinkmann and Maurice Laßhof are analyzing how right-wing populist slates, particularly a list called “Zentrum,” are competing for seats on works councils ahead of the 2026 elections.

The study asks two central questions: What issues do these groups campaign on? And where in the workforce do they find support?

Brinkmann and Laßhof will present their findings on July 15 in a specialist lecture. Their work suggests that the established architecture of co-determination — long anchored by unions and traditional works councils — is coming under pressure from these new challengers.

The trend inside workplace ballots mirrors a broader shift in German society, the researchers argue. Outside the factory gates, the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) is pushing an increasingly hardline agenda. In Saxony-Anhalt, the party is discussing a 100-day plan that would include stricter detention for deportation and a work obligation for asylum seekers.

North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s most populous state, is also in the party’s sights. The AfD is preparing for the 2027 state election and will, for the first time, field its own candidate for minister-president. Yet the party is far from united — internal feuds and the expulsion of critics have repeatedly made headlines.

The wider political debate has grown sharper. Lawyers and politicians are weighing measures that range from stripping voting rights from those convicted of incitement to partial bans on extremist party wings.

The Hans-Böckler-Stiftung research now provides data aimed at connecting the dots between the national political climate and the mood on shop floors across Germany.