Many companies planning to introduce a mobility budget reach the same point in their internal decision process: the works council has to be involved. For benefits managers, that often means a delay of two to three months, and sometimes the quiet end of a promising project. Works council involvement is not the obstacle it is usually treated as. HR teams that understand the process, prepare the right arguments, and treat the works council as a partner get the mobility budget approved and end up with a more durable implementation and higher take-up across the workforce.
A mobility budget is an employee benefit introduced for the whole workforce or for defined groups. Under the Betriebsverfassungsgesetz, the works council holds co-determination rights where a benefit affects the employment relationship or the internal order of the establishment.
Three provisions matter in practice:
§ 87 Abs. 1 Nr. 10 BetrVG, company pay structure. Where the mobility budget is introduced as an additional element of remuneration, the works council co-determines the principles by which it is distributed. This is usually the central provision.
§ 87 Abs. 1 Nr. 6 BetrVG, technical monitoring devices. Mobility budget platforms process digital data about employees, which brings the introduction of the software itself within scope. The provision applies where a system is objectively capable of monitoring performance or conduct, whether or not the employer intends to use it that way.
§ 87 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 BetrVG, order of the establishment. Where the mobility policy sets rules of conduct rather than pay, co-determination can arise on this basis as well.
Note: the legal classification depends on the individual case. For binding advice, consult a lawyer specialising in German employment law.
Phase 1, internal preparation (weeks 1 to 2): Finalise the concept: eligible groups, budget levels, mobility options, tax model. The more concrete the concept, the smoother the works council process runs.
Phase 2, first information meeting (week 3): Inform the works council early, before every decision has been made. An open first meeting signals partnership.
Phase 3, documentation (weeks 3 to 4): Provide a description of the solution, data protection documentation including the data processing agreement and the ISO/IEC 27001 certificate, a draft of the mobility policy, and a tax overview.
Phase 4, negotiating the works agreement (weeks 4 to 8): The recurring topics are data protection, equal treatment, budget levels, and terms of use. Well-prepared projects often settle this in two to four weeks.
Phase 5, conclusion and implementation (weeks 8 to 12): Technical setup runs in parallel and typically takes one to four weeks.
Create the work place of tomorrow with NAVIT. We are happy to support you with designing the best mobility solution for your company. Get in touch with us!
Contact us
"Will movement profiles be created? Who has access to the data?"
This is almost always the first question, and addressing it properly settles most of the negotiation.
A mobility budget platform records transaction data: what was paid for, the amount, and the category. That is the same category of information a corporate credit card statement contains. NAVIT records no GPS data, no location data, and no movement profiles. NAVIT is certified to ISO/IEC 27001 and stores all data in Germany. A data processing agreement under Article 28 GDPR is concluded as standard.
The works agreement can go further and rule out performance and conduct monitoring explicitly. Works councils tend to want this in writing regardless of the technical position, and there is no reason to resist it.
"Why do some people get more? What about employees without a smartphone?"
A mobility budget is structurally more inclusive than most mobility benefits. It works regardless of where someone lives or which mode they use, which is not true of a company car, and not true of a public transport subsidy at sites with weak service.
Differentiation between groups is permitted, and it has to rest on objective grounds. Location, commuting distance, working hours, and function level can all justify different budget levels. What does not work is differentiation nobody can explain.
"Does the mobility budget replace the Jobticket or the company car?"
The mobility budget is additive rather than a substitution. The Deutschlandticket as a Jobticket can be integrated into it or run alongside it. Existing works agreements on the Jobticket generally remain in force and can be supplemented.
Say this early. A works council that suspects a benefit is being swapped rather than added will negotiate very differently.
"Is the system reliable? What happens when something breaks?"
Documented customer projects put monthly HR effort at around one hour in nine of twelve cases, with DACHSER at four hours across more than 70 sites and Babbel at three hours. Those are individual results rather than a promise, and the range is the honest answer to the question.
On integration, NAVIT has documented connections to Workday, Personio, Persis, Sage, DATEV, and Benifex from live customer projects.
"Who is liable if the tax treatment is wrong?"
Three routes are relevant, and they are separate legal instruments that should not be added together.
A platform can apply the correct treatment per transaction and document it for payroll. Liability for the tax treatment stays with the employer, which is why the works agreement should record which model applies to which group.
A well-drafted mobility policy is what makes the works agreement straightforward. Most negotiation time is spent on questions the policy should already have answered.
Who receives the budget?
Either everyone, or defined groups. Differentiation by location, commuting distance, working hours, or function level has to be objectively justifiable and, in practice, explainable in one sentence.
How much?
Common ranges run €30 to €150 per month. Where a company wants to stay within the €50 benefit-in-kind exemption limit, that ceiling sets the budget. Where the Deutschlandticket is offered as a Jobticket, that is a separate arrangement under a different provision with its own conditions.
What can the budget be used for?
Typical categories are public transport, rail, shared mobility, taxi, fuel, and charging. The broader the policy, the higher the take-up, because the budget then fits people whose commute does not match the default assumption.
What happens to unused budget?
Unused budget can be carried over to the following month. Works councils tend to ask about this, since a use-it-or-lose-it design reads as a benefit designed not to be used.
Our mobility experts at NAVIT would love to share their knowledge with you about the new mobility product. Feel free to get in touch with us!
Get infoHere is a structure that has worked in practice:
Point 6 is where negotiations either settle or stall. Draft it before the meeting rather than during it.
Communicate the mobility budget as early as possible and transparently. Inform the works council before decisions are final. A works council brought in early sees itself as a co-designer. One brought in at the end sees itself as a control function, and behaves accordingly.
Lead with the benefits for employees. More choice, a real financial contribution, and a benefit that reaches everyone rather than only those entitled to a company car.
Argue with numbers. Documented customer results carry more weight than a description of the product. Section 7 has four.
Raise data protection yourself. Putting it on the table before the works council does builds credibility and shows the concern is taken seriously.
Prepare an internal presentation. Solution overview, employee benefit, data protection documentation, draft policy, and timeline. One document, so nobody has to assemble it from four.
apoBank: over 95 % take-up, replacing a paper-based system
The Deutsche Apotheker- und Ärztebank introduced NAVIT for more than 2,500 employees across 81 locations, replacing paper meal vouchers that had reached roughly 50 % of the workforce. Take-up of the digital mobility budget is above 95 %, and administration fell from 112 to 9 person-days per year, a reduction of around 90 %. Implementation took under three months. As a regulated bank, apoBank had both data protection and works council requirements to satisfy.
Deloitte: 9,700 Deutschlandticket subscriptions across 16 sites
Deloitte made the Deutschlandticket available to around 14,000 employees at 16 German locations, with approximately 9,700 subscriptions taken up, a rate of about 70 %. Monthly HR effort is around one hour, and payroll receives one consolidated report for all 16 sites. At that scale, careful coordination with employee representatives is a precondition rather than an afterthought.
DACHSER: more than 6,800 sign-ups across 70+ locations
DACHSER SE offers NAVIT products as two of seven benefits inside its own benefits programme, delivered through the Benifex platform, with communication in seven languages. Those two products account for 60 % of all benefit sign-ups in the programme. Administration runs at four hours per month and required no additional headcount.
Read the DACHSER case study
persona service: from a ten-branch pilot to more than 200 branches
persona service, one of Germany’s larger staffing providers, started with a pilot across ten branches in March 2023 and extended to more than 200 branches by August 2023. Active use runs at 80 % of all branches. The pilot-first sequence is worth noting for anyone facing a sceptical works council, since it converts an argument about principle into a question about evidence.
Works council involvement is not a bureaucratic hurdle to be cleared. It is the step that determines whether a mobility budget lands as something employees trust or something they treat with suspicion. Companies that take it seriously get higher take-up and a more stable legal basis.
Three things shorten the process. Prepare the documentation before the first meeting rather than in response to questions. Raise data protection yourself. Bring evidence from comparable companies rather than product description.
Done that way, the works council process runs four to eight weeks, which is considerably shorter than the reputation it has.
Do we always need the works council’s agreement?
In companies with a works council, involvement under § 87 BetrVG is normally required. The precise co-determination rights depend on the individual case. Companies without a works council skip this step.
How long does works council involvement usually take?
Four to eight weeks with good preparation. Some projects have gone through in two to three weeks, others have taken three to four months. The variables are how early the works council was involved and how complete the documentation was.
Can we introduce a mobility budget without a works agreement?
Sometimes. A declaration of consent or a Regelungsabkommen can be sufficient depending on the circumstances. A clear written agreement covering data protection, terms of use, and equal treatment is worth having in any case, and the legal assessment belongs with an employment lawyer.
What happens if the works council refuses?
Outright refusal is rare where the process has been prepared properly. Where the parties disagree on the design, either side can call a conciliation committee (Einigungsstelle) under the BetrVG. In practice, open discussion and willingness to adjust, particularly on data protection wording, resolves almost every case.
Does NAVIT provide documentation for the works council process?
Yes. Data processing agreement, ISO/IEC 27001 certificate, GDPR compliance statement, a template works agreement, and a works council presentation. NAVIT can also join the works council meeting directly to answer questions.
What data does NAVIT collect about employees?
Transaction data only: what was paid for, the amount, and the category. No GPS data, no location data, and no movement profiles. Performance and conduct monitoring can additionally be ruled out explicitly in the works agreement.
Can the Deutschlandticket be included in the works agreement?
Yes. It can be governed separately or as part of the mobility budget. NAVIT supports full integration including split pay, where the employer subsidy can be set at any level. Existing Jobticket works agreements generally remain in force and can be supplemented.
Disclaimer: NAVIT accepts noliability for the accuracy of the information provided. The content on ourwebsite is for general information purposes only and does not constitute tax orlegal advice. It cannot and is not intended to replace individual, binding taxand legal advice addressing your specific circumstances. All information isprovided without warranty as to accuracy or completeness.
Sign up for our newsletter to receive the latest insights about our mobility solution products like the 49 eurojob ticket.
