101. Trade unions are associations representing the interests of …

Answer options

1. young people.
2. employees (workers and salaried employees).
3. pensioners.
4. employers.

Explanation

Trade unions, as voluntary associations of employees, represent their members’ social and economic interests, notably through collective bargaining under the Collective Agreements Act. Their freedom of action is protected as the freedom of association for the purpose of improving working and economic conditions in Article 9(3) of the Basic Law and includes the right to conduct industrial action (strikes); employer associations enjoy the mirror right. Historically, free unions were destroyed in 1933 and replaced by the German Labor Front; after 1945 they were reconstituted (notably within the DGB), and the Federal Constitutional Court has affirmed collective bargaining autonomy as a core element of the social market economy. Unions are distinct from works councils under the Works Constitution Act, though they cooperate.