What should be the principles of an effective system of economic democracy? Evidence and experience suggests there are five: of universality, votes at work, votes in capital, votes in public services, and experiment. First, there is a universal right to take part in the government of every social institution, with the right to vote at the core, with deliberative discourse, based on the view that each person has equal value. Second, there is a right to vote at work, particularly for representatives on the governing boards of any enterprise, through work councils with binding rights in management, and through sectoral collective determination of working conditions. Third, all investors, and especially workers’ saving for retirement, have a right to determine how votes on their capital, particularly company shares, are used and to collectively determine investment policies. Fourth, everyone has the right to vote in public services, particularly where competition law is not enough to protect the public interest or markets fail: if consumers can no longer vote with their feet, people need votes for real as members of an enterprise. Fifth, since there can be a wide variety of models that implement these principles, it is essential that international law, regional law such as the EU, and national laws create standards that can be built upon, leaving room for sensitivity to local practice, and above all experiment
