The number of employees covered by a collective agreement in Germany is steadily diminishing. A major reason for this development is the increasing reluctance of employers to participate in collective bargaining and the decreasing coverage of employers' associations . Initially, the book examines the main factors in the legal system responsible for this development in order to develop concepts to stabilise the system, inter alia in reference to other jurisdictions. It is aimed at both academics and practitioners in the field of collective bargaining law. Prof. Dr. Olaf Deinert is Dean of Studies at the Law Faculty, University of Gottingen, and author of numerous publications on Labour and Employment Law. Dr. Manfred Walser is research assisstant at the Chair for German and International Labour, Employment and Comparative Law, University of Hamburg.