Collective bargaining in China: Guangdong regulation a harbinger of national model?
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Collective bargaining in China: Guangdong regulation a harbinger of national model? Ronald C. Brown1
© China-EU School of Law 2015
Abstract Negotiating collective contracts in China can be viewed as a source of “law-making,” regulating the employment relationship; and, issues are raised regarding enforcement of the process and the resultant contract. China’s collective negotiations have evolved from the iron rice bowl to collective contracts negotiated by processes recently resembling “collective bargaining.” Labor disputes frequently occur during the negotiation process and over collective contracts. The All China Federation of Trade Unions increasingly embraces collective negotiations as it strives to stay relevant. While labor rights are dealt with by legal measures providing mediation and arbitration; processes for resolving disputes involving labor interests are still evolving. While use of the Labor Arbitration Committees is widespread for disputes of labor rights, there is a very underdeveloped regulation for resolving labor interest disputes, notwithstanding since 2004 there are national legal provisions in place that could deal with the negotiation process, impasses, or labor interest disputes. Discussed in this paper are the legal developments of collective bargaining and a summary and critique of the September 25, 2014 Guangdong Province Regulation on Collective Contracts for Enterprises. Observations are made whether it can serve as a model for national legislation. Keywords Collective bargaining · Mediation · Consultation · Strikes · Wage negotiations
Paper presented at the Ninth Annual General Conference of the European China Law Studies Association “Making, Enforcing and Accessing the Law” Hong Kong, 15–16 November 2014. & Ronald C. Brown [email protected] 1
University of Hawai‘i Law School, Honolulu, HI, USA
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R. C. Brown
1 Introduction Developing a new Regulation1 that provides workers in the southern province of Guangdong the right to collectively bargain over the terms of their labor has had workers and the Province’s Hong Kong investors at odds. Six chambers of commerce in Hong Kong called for the government to delay passage of the draft proposal Guangdong Province Regulation on Collective Contracts for Enterprises,2 prompting a responsive “complaint” to the ILO.3 The Guangdong Province Federation of Trade Unions, having more than 20 million members, promoted the law.4 The Regulation requires a company to bargain with workers over wages and other labor terms at the request of one-half of its employees5 and workers are in effect prohibited from striking or disrupting order during the designated threemonth negotiating period.6 This new Regulation comes at a time in China when the government at the national level seems to be moving toward finding solutions to the rising number of labor disputes and developing a more stable and sustainable system of economic growth. However, this fundamental policy goal is hindered in many regions by the lack of any real wage growth or improved working co
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