Hans-Böckler-Stiftung

Hans‑Böckler‑Stiftung is a German foundation established in 1977 and named after the former trade‑union leader Hans Böckler. It operates as the research arm of the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB) and focuses on labour, social and economic policy. The foundation produces studies, reports and working papers that analyse topics such as wage trends, working‑time arrangements, social security systems and demographic developments. These publications are made freely accessible through its website, where users can access the full texts and register for events. In addition to publishing, the organisation hosts conferences, workshops and expert panels that bring together union representatives, policymakers and academics. Its target audience includes trade unions, employer associations, government bodies, scholars and the interested public. The foundation’s work is intended to support evidence‑based collective bargaining and to inform legislative processes at the federal and state levels. Funding for its activities comes primarily from the DGB and from public project grants administered by federal and state ministries.

Hans‑Böckler‑Stiftung’s distinguishing attribute is its specialization in evidence‑based labour‑market research, which positions it as a key think‑tank for the German union movement. It maintains a reputation for methodological rigor, often employing interdisciplinary approaches that combine economics, sociology and political science. Although the organisation does not have regulatory authority, its analyses are frequently cited in policy debates and contribute to the formulation of social‑partner agreements. Structurally, the foundation operates as an independent entity under civil law, with its governance entrusted to a board of trustees that includes representatives from the DGB and other stakeholder groups. The cyber incident of July 2025 highlighted the foundation’s reliance on digital infrastructure for disseminating research, prompting a coordinated response with BSI‑certified incident‑response experts, law‑enforcement and the North Rhine‑Westphalia data‑protection commissioner. Following the attack, the foundation restored key services such as the download function for studies and papers and implemented continuous dark‑net monitoring to safeguard future operations. Temporary work‑arounds were deployed to keep event registrations and other operations running while full restoration proceeded. The organisation fulfilled its information obligations by notifying potentially affected individuals that personal data including names, birth dates, contact details and financial information might have been accessed, although forensic analysis found no evidence of actual data exfiltration.