25 August 2008
We may have reached a crucial turning point in the history of China’s trade union movement. For the first time since 1949, senior trade union officials are openly stating that the union should represent the workers and no one else, while new legislation in Shenzhen places collective bargaining – previously a no-go area – at the core of the union’s work.
Zhang Youquan, the head of the Shenzhen Federation Trade Union’s legal department has said the city’s Implementing Regulations for the Trade Union Law, enacted on 1 August will help create a “responsible, empowered and battle-ready union” that can protect workers’ rights. And Zhang was backed up by the head of the Guangzhou Federation who stressed that role of the union should change from “persuading the boss” to “mobilizing the workers.”
The regulations are remarkable because, for first time in China’s local legislation, they use the term “collective bargaining,” rather than the previously-used but much weaker concept of “collective consultations.” The experience of the labour movement in many other countries has shown that collective bargaining is the most effective way to protect workers’ rights and bolster the role of the trade union. Above all, it is a means of resolving labour disputes through peaceful social dialogue. Such an approach is sorely needed in China today, and the Shenzhen authorities should be congratulated on their important new initiative.
After three decades of economic reform, China had reached the point when something had to be done. Today in Shenzhen we can see the worst excesses of capitalism, but also the desire of the people for social justice and – with these new regulations – the willingness of the government to move towards capitalism with a human face.
The regulations stress that collective bargaining is the core responsibility of trade unions and provide clear guidelines on how the process should work. These provisions effectively transform collective bargaining in China from a vague concept into, potentially, a genuine right that can be utilized by ordinary workers to improve their terms and conditions of employment.
Moreover, the whole of chapter three (The Rights and Obligations of Trade Unions) does not contain a single reference to the traditional tasks outlined in the 2001 Trade Union Law, such as helping the enterprise to restore normal production in the event of a work stoppage or slowdown. Rather the regulations make it very clear that during a labour dispute the role of the trade union is to represent workers in negotiations with management. Moreover, for the first time in China, the regulations (Article 36) stipulate that grassroots trade union officials should receive a small monthly subsidy from the municipal federation that will go some way toward lessening union officials’ dependence on the enterprise for their operating funds.
Of course, the regulations are far from perfect, but together with the Shenzhen Labour Relations Regulations, due to go into force at the end of September, they have effectively opened the door for the Shenzhen Federation of Trade Unions to transform itself into a much more effective representative of workers’ rights and interests.
China Labour Bulletin hopes that the Shenzhen Federation of Trade Unions can take practical steps to create a successful bargaining model that others can follow, thereby making collective bargaining a key part of China’s emerging civil society.
Change will not happen overnight but, step by step, progress is already being made. And in retrospect, 2008 may well turn out to be one of the most important years in the history of China’s trade union movement. Earlier this year, we saw the implementation of three new national labour laws, and now we have the introduction of collective bargaining in Shenzhen. This has all come from two factors: the growing determination of Chinese workers to stand up for their rights, and the government’s willingness to respond in a practical and positive manner.
Geoffrey Crothall is the editor of China Labour Bulletin