Managers in firms with fifty or more employees are meant, under EU inspired law, to consult employees, through their representatives, about planned changes that affect the workforce. The book explores justifications for consultation over time and why it is much more important now that trade unions are weaker. It shows why and how the EU came to legislate in this area, and explains the half-hearted response of employers, unions, and the government in the UK. Examining comparative practices in other EU countries, the book asks what needs to be done to ensure the practice of consultation is more widely adopted.