Last week, German-Canadian entrepreneur Tobi Lütke laid off 20 percent of his team. The Shopify boss did not give exact figures, but in purely mathematical terms around 2,000 employees lost their jobs worldwide. The Canadian company, which develops software for e-commerce customers, has made a major cut in Germany, among other places. However: A few days before CEO Lütke announced the mass layoffs, German employees sent out an invitation to elect a works council.
On April 27, the initiators of the German employee committee sent an e-mail about the upcoming election, as Gründerszene found out. On Thursday, May 4th, a week later, Shopify announced the terminations. According to information from Gründerszene, at least one of the six heads of the works council is affected.
Shopify denies connection
“Shopify recognizes the will to set up a works council within the framework of the regulations on employee participation in Germany,” says a spokeswoman. “However, the global restructuring of the company was decided well in advance of the efforts to establish a works council in Germany.”