die Belegschaft
workforce
All employees of a company, factory, or organization as a whole.
EXAMPLE
Die Geschäftsführung informierte die gesamte Belegschaft über die neuen Pläne.
Management informed the entire workforce about the new plans.
die Belegschaft
workforce
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Meanings
Usage tips
Word structure
The word ends in '-schaft', an ending that often describes collectives or groups of people (e.g., 'Mannschaft' — team, 'Gesellschaft' — society). 'Belegschaft' refers to all the people who 'belegen' (occupy) the positions in a company.
EXAMPLE
Die Freundschaft zwischen den Kollegen war auch nach der Arbeit stark.
The friendship between the colleagues remained strong even after work.
Use as a collective noun
'Belegschaft' is a singular noun, but it refers to a group of many people. Therefore, the verb in the sentence is normally singular, even though many people are meant.
EXAMPLE
Die Belegschaft stimmt über den Vorschlag ab.
The workforce is voting on the proposal.
Typical collocations
The word is often used in business and corporate contexts. Typical verbs are 'die Belegschaft informieren' (to inform the workforce), 'sich an die Belegschaft wenden' (to address the workforce), or 'die Belegschaft vertreten' (to represent the workforce), for example through a works council.
EXAMPLE
Der Betriebsrat vertritt die Interessen der gesamten Belegschaft.
The works council represents the interests of the entire workforce.
Compare with
Belegschaft vs Mitarbeiter
employee
Mitarbeiter can refer to an individual employee or to an explicitly named group. Belegschaft, on the other hand, always means all the employees of a company as a collective. When referring to individual people, use Mitarbeiter; for the entire group, Belegschaft is appropriate.
Belegschaft
Die gesamte Belegschaft erhält heute eine Einladung zur Besprechung.
The entire workforce will receive an invitation to the meeting today.
Mitarbeiter
Jeder Mitarbeiter erhält heute eine Einladung zur Besprechung.
Every employee will receive an invitation to the meeting today.
In real life
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