The two parties have a considerable autonomy with regard to the content of the agreement. Nevertheless, the Directive (Art. 4 II) lays down some minimum requirements like

  • the scope of the agreement,

  • the composition, number of members and allocation of seats on the representative body (RB)

  • the functions and the procedure for the information and consultation of the RB,

  • the financial and material resources of the RB

  • the date of entry into force and the duration of the agreement.

If the parties have decided to establish board-level participation, the agreement must define the number of employee board members, the procedure for their election or nomination and their rights.

Consequently, the parties can agree to raise or to reduce existing participation rights (> voting majorities). In the case of a transformation alone, the agreement must ensure at least the same level of all elements of employee involvement as before (Art. 4 IV Dir).