Social elections with SD Worx

Social consultation in balance

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2024 product description

 

Introduction

Ever since the first social elections in 1950, SD Worx has been providing answers to all the possible legal and practical questions from various industries and assisting companies in the organisation of the social elections and their social consultation. We have now used this experience to create solutions that work, such as an online platform that we ourselves use to assist our clients or which can also be made available to you if you prefer to have more control over the process.

To ensure that your company receives the help it needs with this exacting and intensive procedure, you can choose between two packages: “Comfort” and “Essential”. You can also extend these basic packages with additional products and services.

Your personal quotation includes a price calculation for these basic packages based on your company’s situation (number of employees and number of bodies to be elected). You can adapt this to fit your specific needs. It also shows the prices for the additional products and services.
This description is part of your quotation.
For more information, please contact socialelections@sdworx.com.

In both cases, you can count on a solid basis for a balanced social consultation.

Basic packages

Comfort Pack

SD Worx will guide you through the procedure step by step.

Are your previous elections long ago, is this your first time organising them or do you simply lack the time to attend to the procedure? If so, our “Comfort Pack” is the right choice! We shall help you with the entire process from A to Z. That way you can be sure everything is handled correctly and happens at the right times.

You choose the day on which you wish to hold elections. SD Worx will then guide you through the entire administrative procedure leading up to your elections. The procedure starts on Day X-60 (December 2023) and ends on Day Y (election day in May 2024). Our employees will start preparing your file from mid-October of 2023.

If you are affiliated with our SD Worx payroll service, we already have most of the required information in our database. Support by an SAP or X-Tend consultant is also possible (see item 8 under optional products and services). If you are not affiliated with us, you must provide us with the data yourself using our Microsoft Excel template.

What is included in this package?

A permanent contact will follow your file step by step. He or she will manage your election calendar, carry out most of the tasks and provide you with the right documents at the right time. He or she will let you know well in advance what you still need to do. The reason for which we do not take on these tasks? Because they must take place at your company premises (e.g. the posting of notices) or because only you have access to the required information (e.g. managerial and executive positions).
 
This is the nerve centre of your election procedure and offers a convenient central overview of the tasks you still need to follow up on with a clear explanation and the precise deadline. This online dashboard also provides access to all your generated documents, information on every procedural step, messages from your adviser, social election newsflashes and more. Everything you need, clearly organised in one place!

Communication with your personal adviser happens mainly through this dashboard, where you can exchange documents in both directions and check each other’s input so as to reduce the risk of errors (e.g. spelling of names on ballot papers).

Technical requirements to use the online dashboard:
  • a reliable Internet connection
  • one of the following Internet browsers: Microsoft Edge 106+, Firefox 102+, Google Chrome 108+ or Safari 14+,
  • Microsoft Office 2013+,
  • a screen with a minimum resolution of 1280 × 800 pixels.
 
You will receive e-mails about new tasks, documents and newsflashes automatically. You can rest assured that you will not miss any important events or essential information.
 
Your personal adviser will place the correct documents, lists and letters on your dashboard at the right time and in the correct language (Dutch, French or German, possibly with an English translation). You are responsible for printing, announcing or forwarding these items to the appropriate bodies.
 
You will be the first to read the latest news about the social elections in our messages on the dashboard.
 
Your personal adviser will answer all your practical and legal questions about the election process during the entire time it is running. These may relate to the election date, technical business unit, number of consultative bodies, managers, executives, disputes, candidates, voters’ lists, terminations, electoral colleges and polling stations, convocations, voting, election results, mandates and objections.
Your personal adviser will refer any questions that are not about the actual election procedure or that require us to meet up (for example questions about negotiations with trade unions or the drafting of company-level and collective labour agreements) to our legal consultants. They will be happy to help for an additional charge. See ‘Additional legal advice’ under ‘Additional services and products’.
 
This practical and legal work of reference explains each step in the process. See ‘Additional services and products’
 
Our “Comfort Pack” includes a digital training package consisting of:

Access to SD Worx Academy – Social Elections section
Choose where, when and how you wish to boost your knowledge of the social elections procedure yourself.
This online platform offers on-demand webinars during which our experts provide clear explanations of each step of the election procedure and other important aspects of social elections.
These webinar recordings are available at whatever time is most convenient for you. Furthermore, you can consult these online training courses as often as you wish.

Access to DigiFAQ – Social Elections section
This online platform is a new, supplementary tool with answers to all your frequently asked questions about social elections.
Thanks to the handy search function, you have access to clear, practical answers quickly, even outside business hours.
Your personal adviser will also remain available to answer your legal questions, of course.

Two employees will have access to the SD Worx Academy and DigiFAQ. Additional access will be charged separately. See also ‘Additional services and products’.

 
Your regular legal assistance insurance does not cover any social election disputes. That is why we take out special legal assistance insurance for social elections. This insurance covers lawyers’ fees and court costs up to EUR 5,000 per dispute.
 
Paper votes create a huge amount of paper, prolong the voting process and require a manual ballot count. For this reason, we therefore recommend electronic voting. Find out more about what we can do for you in this regard under ‘Additional services and products’.
If you still prefer paper votes, SD Worx will print and deliver the ballots. We shall ensure that they are in your possession well in advance, comply with the rules and are perfectly suitable for your company’s elections.
You handle the date stamps on the ballot papers yourself and make the arrangements for the polling station: voting booths, pencils, ballot box, etc.
 
You can use this online tool to calculate the election results on election day; the number of mandates and the designation of actual and substitute members.
The tool will also generate an election report and the statistical certificate for the authorities.
 

Essential Pack

For experienced election coordinators

If you already have plenty of experience coordinating and organising social elections and you prefer to handle things yourself, our “Essential Pack” is the right choice.

SD Worx will provide you with an online platform. This platform includes a calendar that will guide you through the procedure and a dashboard that clearly shows all your outstanding tasks. You will be responsible for performing all the tasks. The application will generate all of the documents and you will print them as you need them.

What is included in this package?

You can manage your election procedure yourself using our flexible, task-driven online platform. This web application is available any time and anywhere, and no software needs to be installed.

If you are affiliated with our SD Worx payroll service, you can generate a report in your payroll package that can be used to import the required data into the online platform. Support by an SAP or X-Tend consultant is also possible (see item 8 under optional products and services). If you are not an SD Worx payroll service client, you will need to retrieve your personnel data yourself and use the Excel import module.

Your Dashboard is the nerve centre of your online platform and your election process and shows a central overview of the active tasks in chronological order and based on your election calendar. You see a clear explanation of each task and its exact deadline. You see only the steps in the process and the tasks that are relevant for your file. This dashboard guides you smoothly through the administrative election process and allows you to generate documents at the right moment and in the correct language (Dutch, French and German), etc.

The dashboard also provides information on each procedural step, social election newsflashes and more.

The technical requirements for using this online platform are:
  • a reliable Internet connection,
  • one of the following Internet browsers: Microsoft Edge 106+, Firefox 102+, Google Chrome 108+ or Safari 14+,
  • Microsoft Office 2013+,
  • a screen with a minimum resolution of 1280 × 800 pixels.
You receive the necessary digital technical training.
 
The “Essential Pack” is intended for experienced election coordinators who prefer to handle things themselves. This package does not include any practical or legal advice. If you do require practical or legal support with your election procedure, then we recommend our “Comfort Pack”.

What if you still have a legal question? You can call on the expertise of our legal consultants by also selecting the ‘Additional legal advice’ package. They will be happy to help you further for an additional charge. See ‘Additional legal advice’ under ‘Additional services and products’.

We also provide a technical helpdesk to help you should you have any problems with the software. The helpdesk answers only questions about the application and will not deal with any questions about practical or substantive aspects of the procedure.
 
You will receive e-mails about new tasks, documents and newsflashes automatically. Tasks that are approaching their deadline or that have not been completed on time will be highlighted.
 
You will be the first to read the latest news about the social elections in our messages on the dashboard.
 
This practical and legal work of reference explains each step in the procedure. See ‘Additional services and products’.
 
You can use this online tool to calculate the election results on the election day; the number of mandates and the designation of actual and substitute members.
This information is also available on your online dashboard, so you can always refer to it at a later date, for example when one of the elected representatives resigns. The tool will also generate an election report and the statistical certificate for the authorities.

Comparison between the packages
 
Comfort
Essential

Online dashboard with overview of tasks.

Electronic convocation.

Day Y tool for calculation of results and generation of electoral report.

Practical Guide 2024

E-mail alerts.

Newsflashes.

Personal adviser.

All documents will be generated by your personal adviser and displayed for you on your dashboard

Legal support regarding the procedure available from your personal adviser.

Printed ballot papers.

Digital training package for two people.

(optional additional access)

Legal assistance

Optional support for uploads to FPS Employment, Labour and Social Dialogue application.

Technical helpdesk for questions about the online platform.

Not applicable

“Comfort”
“Essential”

You outsource most tasks and are able to rely on the expertise of your personal adviser.

You are in control, working autonomously with the support of our online platform. You receive digital technical training on its use.

Your risks and dedicated time will be considerably less.

 

Your personal adviser will prepare your account on the online platform.

Before you start, you need to prepare your own account on the online platform.

If you are an SD Worx payroll service client, we shall provide the personnel data that we have for you in the system.

If you are an SD Worx payroll service client, you can upload your personnel data from your pay package.

If you are not an SD Worx payroll service client, you can send us a file with your personnel data via your dashboard environment.

If you are not an SD Worx payroll service client, you must retrieve your personnel data yourself and use the Excel import module to upload them.

You need to provide any additional data not available to us or to your payroll service provider.

You need to provide any additional data not available to us or to your payroll service provider.

You choose the election date.

You choose the election date.

Your dashboard includes an overview of a limited number of tasks that you must carry out yourself, because we are unable to handle them (e.g. due to insufficient information) or may not handle them (e.g. certain decisions) or that must take place on your company premises (e.g. posting of notices).

You are responsible for performing all the tasks. You generate your own calendar that will control your list of tasks. Your dashboard will show an overview of all active tasks.

All documents will be generated by your personal adviser and displayed for you on your dashboard.

You generate all documents yourself.

You print all documents yourself and display them on bulletin boards or send them to the appropriate bodies.

You print all documents yourself and display them on bulletin boards or send them to the appropriate bodies.

You can address any questions on the procedure to your personal adviser.

You need to look up the answers to any questions that you have about the procedure yourself.

You will receive the printed ballot papers.

You generate and print the ballot papers yourself.

A digital training package for two people is included. Optionally, you can register additional participants.

The digital training package is not included. You can still add this as an option.

Legal assistance is included.

Legal assistance is not included.

Optional support for uploads to FPS Employment, Labour and Social Dialogue application.

No support is possible for uploads to the FPS Employment, Labour and Social Dialogue application.

 

The technical helpdesk will handle solely questions about the online platform.

 

All content questions are considered ‘Additional legal advice’.

 

Tailored package

Custom Pack

Thanks to our years of experience working with customers, SD Worx knows that no two companies are the same. It is possible that unusual or temporary circumstances can render our “Comfort” and “Essential” basic packages insufficient to meet your needs. In such cases, we also offer a package specially tailored to your needs; our “Custom Pack”.

Specifically, we can expand our Comfort service to include various other tailored services. For example, you can have a legal consultant advise your Works Council and/or your company’s Committee for Prevention and Protection at Work on the progress of your election procedure. Or an SD Worx employee can ensure that all the required official notices are posted on your company’s premises at the statutorily mandated times.

With this package, you can choose to have everything handled for you throughout your entire elections procedure.

We shall be happy to discuss your needs and possible solutions together with you. As this involves collaboration fully tailored to your needs, please contact us at socialelections@sdworx.com. We shall get in touch with you and draw up an appropriate quote.

Additional services and products

You can extend our “Comfort” and “Essential” packages with the following services and products.

We believe that voting using paper is outdated and recommend e-voting, insofar as the trade unions at your company are in agreement, of course. This has advantages for your employees, the trade unions and your own HR department:
  • There is less administrative work for HR.
  • You can count on a higher turn-out.
  • Your election results have greater legitimacy.
  • The voting process takes up less time.
  • Votes are counted faster and without errors.
  • It is easier for the trade unions to check the results.
  • You strengthen your image as a modern, environmentally conscious company.
SD Worx will provide a training course on the use of the e-voting application and answer all your questions. If you choose our “Comfort Pack”, your personal adviser will also provide phone and e-mail support.

Our preferred partner: Assembly Voting

For the 2024 elections, just as in 2020, SD Worx has concluded an exclusive agreement with the Danish organisation, Assembly Voting. They have built up global experience with elections of various types, both public and professional (e.g. trade union elections), since 2001. Assembly Voting adheres to the highest standards in security and protection for electronic voting. This led to their e-voting application being selected to facilitate the political elections in the United States of America.

The application has been adapted to comply with Belgium’s social election rules, of course, and has received SD Worx’s seal of approval.

Assembly Voting makes voting user-friendly, highly secure and transparent. and guarantees your voters’ anonymity. Voters are identified by a username and password. The witnesses can follow the voting process in real time on graphs and a detailed log is kept. This approach has gained the organisation the trust of parties, such as the Scandinavian trade unions.

Another advantage is that this solution is fully integrated with our SD Worx social election packages. Therefore, no data need to be imported or exported. As long as the data in the procedural tool are correct, everything happens automatically. A simple press of a button will enter your results in the Day Y tool for the creation of your election report.

Go to Assembly Voting’s website to learn more about our Danish partner.

Other e-voting providers’ import files

With the exception of our partner Assembly Voting, import files for providers of e-voting are not included as standard, but users may choose:
  • to draw up the necessary import files themselves on their own responsibility;
  • or delegate the creation of this template to SD Worx, which can draw up a separate quotation for this service (contact: socialelections@sdworx.com).
 
You must decide whether postal voting is necessary or useful together with your existing consultative bodies and your personal adviser (if you select our “Comfort Pack”). Legally, you must provide this option for long-term absentees or personnel, such as sales representatives who are often on the road, for example.

As part of this additional service, SD Worx will provide the necessary letters of invitation and ballot papers, ready for posting (correctly folded and sorted, in the correct envelopes, with stamped return envelopes and instructions for the employee). Any costs for registered post are not included. You will also need to provide the date stamps yourself in collaboration with the polling station.
 
This additional service is available solely as an extension of our “Comfort Pack”.

At various points in the procedure, you are obliged to submit information to the FPS Employment, Labour and Social Dialogue and the trade unions via an online application. You must use the FPS Employment, Labour and Social Dialogue web application to fulfil the following obligations:
  • submission of administrative and statistical information to FPS Employment;
  • electronic provision of (pre)electoral information to the various employee organisations;
  • electronic provision of election report to the various employee organisations and FPS Employment;
  • downloading of digital lists of candidates provided by the various employee organisations.
Dealing with these formalities is not included in our basic packages; you must do this yourself.

If you choose our “Comfort Pack”, you can additionally opt to delegate these tasks to your personal adviser. This will ensure that it is done correctly and on time.
 
If you choose our “Comfort Pack”, your personal adviser will be available to answer any legal and practical questions you may have about the election procedure throughout the entire procedure.

All other requests (e.g. regarding company-level agreements, on-site interventions and requests outside the procedure period) are considered ‘Additional legal advice’ and will be charged separately. If a question falls under this heading, your personal adviser will always inform you in good time. If you agree, your question will then be passed on to a legal consultant. After consulting with you, the consultant will draw up a time and cost estimate before providing the requested advice.

If you choose our “Essential Pack”, you will not have a personal adviser available to answer your questions about the procedure. This package is suitable solely for companies with employees who already have sufficient legal knowledge and experience regarding the organisation of social elections. The technical helpdesk included in the package answers only questions about the use of the software application that you received and is not equipped to answer any legal questions. If you have any ad hoc legal questions, you can always contact our legal consultants for ‘Additional legal advice’, which will be charged separately at EUR 210 per hour.

You will be charged for this advice on a time and materials basis per quarter hour started. You will be informed of this before the clock starts running.
 
An experienced legal consultant will come to your company premises on election day (Day Y) to ensure that everything goes smoothly. He or she will ensure that the elections run properly and will help you to designate the mandates.
 
The ‘Practical Guide for Social Elections’, a publication by SD Worx and Larcier Business, is in its sixth edition. The legal expertise and practical solutions are innovative, tested and supported by research.
The authors also highlight the practical side of the election procedure regardless of the restrictions posed by the electoral calendar. They have interspersed the document with some striking jurisprudence, useful tips and clear and concise summaries.
Companies that manage to remain calm and composed during the procedure can start four years of constructive social consultation with an advantage. That is why the authors also discuss issues such as electoral fever and the operation of the consultative bodies.

Nicolas Berben is a managing legal consultant at SD Worx. Jan Vanthournout is a legal manager at SD Worx Consulting and an academic consultant for the Study Group for Social Law at Ghent University. They assist companies with their staff policies every day, especially during social elections, restructuring and social negotiations.

This book is available in Dutch and French and is an essential manual for the smooth progression of social elections in every company.
 
 SD Worx Academy – Social Elections
Choose where, when and how you wish to boost your knowledge of the social elections procedure yourself.
This online platform offers on-demand webinars during which our experts provide clear explanations of each step of the election procedure and other important aspects of social elections.
These webinar recordings are available at whatever time is most convenient for you. Furthermore, you can consult these online training courses as often as you wish.

 DigiFAQ – Social Elections
This online platform is a new, supplementary tool with answers to all your frequently asked questions about social elections.
Thanks to the handy search function, you have access to clear, practical answers quickly, even outside business hours.
Your personal adviser will also remain available to answer your legal questions, of course.

The “Comfort Pack” provides access to SD Worx Academy and the DigiFAQ for two employees. Additional access can be purchased separately.

The “Essential Pack” does not include access to SD Worx Academy or the DigiFAQ. This access must be purchased separately.

Open training courses
In addition to our digital training courses, it is also possible to attend three half-day study sessions at an SD Worx office location:
  1. Procedure leading up to Day X,
  2. Procedure between Day X and Day Y,
  3. The actual elections day from A to Z: for polling station secretaries and chairs.

In-company training courses
It is also possible to have us provide training courses for several participants at your company. This can be particularly attractive for the third training course, for polling station secretaries and chairpersons.
 
SAP and X-Tend users may choose:
  • to draw up the Excel template for the import of employee data themselves on their own responsibility;
  • or to delegate the creation of this template to an SAP or X-Tend consultant, who will prepare a separate invoice for this service.
In your personal quotation, you can calculate the price of these basic packages based on your company’s situation (number of employees and number of bodies to be elected). It also shows the prices for the additional services and products.

This description is part of your quotation.
For more information, please contact socialelections@sdworx.com.
 
Your personal quotation includes a price calculation for these basic packages based on your company’s situation (number of employees and number of bodies to be elected). You can adapt this to fit your specific needs. It also shows the prices for the additional products and services.
This description is part of your quotation.
For more information, please contact socialelections@sdworx.com.
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