The disclosure of information to workers (DIW) has obtained a legal legitimacy with the creation of works councils after the Second World War in France, but in practice, it has become a managerial issue since the industrial revolution. This PHD dissertation tries to identify the evolution of DIW, explaining its context and, finally, what caused the evolution of DIW since 1884. In this objective, the managerial press and especially the accounting journal could be used to identify the recurrence of DIW and to link it with both the social and economic context of each period. Regarding the practice, we analyse three main case studies of three major French steel companies: De Wendel, Schneider and Usinor during a long period (1884 - 1982). Through these case studies, we propose an analysis model of the managerial decision of disclosing information to workers. This decision is explained by four components: the environment, the targeted public, the stake of DIW and the role of a facilitator.
