scholarly journals Regulating Labour Relations in China : The Challenge of Adapting to the Socialist Market Economy

2005 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 753-775
Author(s):  
Pitman B. Potter ◽  
Li Jianyong

This paper examines the new Labour Law of the PRC, effective January 1, 1995, in the light of current and historical conditions of labour relations in China. Provisions regarding the labour contract system and dispute resolution are discussed in greater detail. Issues related to the introduction of collective bargaining and to the relationship between trade unions and the Communist Party are also examined. In their overall assessment, the authors recognize the potential significance of the Labour Law as a major step towards the legal protection of workers' rights, but point out that its effectiveness could be undermined by the preeminent policy of economic growth, by concerns about political control, and by obstacles to full implementation.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
YUN-LING YU

The promulgation of the "Civil Code" provides a path for the codification of other important legal departments closely related to the socialist market economy and the improvement of the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics. However, due to the fact that the development of economic law in our country is relatively short and the economic development is changing rapidly, the current economic code is facing numerous obstacles. This article analyzes the relationship between civil law and economic law, drawing on the innovation of the content of the Civil Code, and puts forward new requirements for the development of the content, concept and system of economic law, and promotes the development of economic law.


2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu Zhang

Purpose Since the implementation of reform and opening up, China has made remarkable achievement in terms of economic reform and development. China’s path, as well as its experience, has simultaneously gained worldwide concerns. Developing the market economy against the backdrop of socialism brings conclusions from China’s achievement, deepens knowledge of China’s pathway and builds a socialist political economy with Chinese characteristics. That is the way to realise a basic socialist system, especially with regards to the organic integration of public ownership and market economy. This combination determines the future of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the success or failure of economic restructuring. Therefore, it requires consideration and in-depth study. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach The goal of economic restructuring is to establish and develop the socialist market economy. Its main content can be summarised in two parts. The first is the relationship between plan and market or government and market. The second is compatibility or combination of public ownership and market economy. The former is one of the superficial problems, relevant to resource allocation method or economic operation mechanism. The latter stems from deep-rooted problems, represented by ownership or the underlying economic system. These two work together to form the organic integrity of socialist market economy where both similarities and contrasts coexist. Findings The shared ideal of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the lofty goals of communism will then become empty words. In this sense we can say that, whether we can realise the unity and opposition between public ownership and market economy and better integrate advantages of socialist system with strengths of market economy, will to a large extent determine the future and destiny of the socialist market economy. Originality/value As previously mentioned, the relationship between plan and market or government and market are part of resource allocation methods or economic operation mechanism. Compatibility and combination, however, with public ownership and market economy are part of an ownership or basic economic system. Science reveals the nature and developmental law of the socialist market economy. An in-depth study must be conducted on the relationship between public ownership and market economy.


2009 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 177-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Langille

Abstract Canadian constitutional law regarding freedom of association for workers is a mess. The jurisprudence to date has taken an approach to state action and positive obligations to legislate which is inconsistent with section 15, and has failed to articulate the relationship between the abstract statement of basic rights or freedoms and the detailed statutes and regulations that instantiate and enforce them. This paper focuses on the impact of the recent decision of the Supreme Court of Canada in BC Health. The author argues that this case misunderstood Canada’s labour law history, international labour law obligations, “Charter values”, and the distinction between “freedoms” and “rights”. This paper argues that by using labour relations statutes as a starting point and applying the constitutional idea of equality, courts can protect freedom of association for workers and find a way out of the mess we are in.


2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 407-425
Author(s):  
Fonja Julius Achu

Labour relations dispute settlement in Cameroon is fraught with problems. This article is aimed at examining the adequacy of Cameroon's labour laws vis-à-vis the settlement of labour disputes. The author uses published records, case law, academic documents and documentaries to gather data. The data collected constitute the sources from which the law is drawn, stated and analysed in light of the stated aim of the article The article argues that in Cameroon the legal mechanism used to regulate labour dispute settlement in the private sector is very fragile and so does not effectively handle labour disputes. The relevance of the article lies in the fact that it addresses issues of law that affect employees, employers and trade unions as it enables them to be aware of the plight of workers and to explore effective strategies for dispute settlement. The findings are equally significant as they expose lacunae in the current law in relation to the settlement of labour disputes and conclude with suggestions on the way forward.


2018 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 459-481
Author(s):  
Charles Smith ◽  
Andrew Stevens

Over the past four decades, governments have backed away from the promotion of collective bargaining in Canada resulting in a tendency towards anti-unionism. Examining this new reality, this article investigates two interrelated trends in Canadian anti-unionism over the last two decades in an effort to conceptualize the role of the state in regulating labour relations. First, we investigate legislative attempts to undermine or eliminate the ability of workers to collectively bargain and strike. Second, the article unpacks the political economy of anti-unionism in the private sector by focusing on the role of lobby groups that have shaped labour legislation. These two interrelated threads allow us to expose the relationship between employers and governments, which has threatened the strength of organized labour in the private and public sector and shaped a uniquely Canadian anti-unionism. Finally, we conclude by examining both the strengths and limitations of the unique fight-back strategies used by the labour movement, which has sought to elevate aspects of Canadian labour law to be protected by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This, we argue, offers restrictive possibilities for advancing collective bargaining rights in the existing labour relations framework.


1989 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 372-384
Author(s):  
Ignace Ng ◽  
John McCallum

Even though identifying the causes of economic growth has been the subject of numerous empirical studies, little is known about the impact of inter-country variations in unionization on differences in economic growth between countries. To fill this apparent gap in the literature, the primary objective of this paper is to examine the influence of trade unions on economic growth in seventeen oECD countries from 1960 to 1979. The results show that the nature of the relationship between trade unions and economic growth depends upon the ideology of the government in power. Under 'non-socialist' governments, increased union density reduces economic growth, whereas under `socialist' governments, a higher level of unionization increases economic growth. This, in turn, implies that governments can have an influence on whether trade unions are growth-inhibiting or growth-promoting. However, because of the limitations in the sample used, additional studies are needed before a consensus can be reached on this issue.


1986 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 185-203 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Batt

The declaration of intent forming the title of this article – united to support but not combined to injure– succinctly illustrates a dilemma that confronted trade unions in Britain in the early nineteenth century, and that has since re-surfaced periodically. Successful trade unionism necessarily requires collective action, whether of an overt form, as during an industrial dispute, or implicitly, as in the enforcement of a closed shop. Not infrequently, though, the claims of solidarity and collective interest run counter to the rights of individuals: of employers, fellow workers and third parties. The intervention of the law provides an added twist to the potential conflict between the individual and the group. While the individual has traditionally enjoyed generous legal protection so that he can conduct his lawful business unhindered, the recognition of collective rights has been hesitant and qualified. The Conspiracy and Protection of Property Act of 1875 and the Trades Disputes Act of 1906 effectively legalized peaceful picketing, but the relationship of criminal law and trade unions remained uneasy despite the rarity of prosecutions for offences such as conspiracy. Nevertheless, during the century and a half since 1825 there has been a progressive tendency – at least until the 1980's – for the contradiction between collective and individual interest to assume a relatively muted and non-violent form. The emergence of institutionalized industrial conflict was a logical consequence of British trade unions achieving a position of respectability in the established order.


2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-109
Author(s):  
Yoo Ho Lim ◽  
Yoon Sung Man

This study aims to identify the reform trends in Chinese tax systems with emphasis on the structural tax reduction policy that has been enforced in China’s socialist market economy system for the past 10 years. This study also intends to draw the implications of such tax reforms by identifying the relationship between China’s socialist and capitalist market economy systems along with other related tax systems and describing the tax policy trends for the last 10 years. A comparison and analysis of the differences in viewpoints on taxation between these market economy systems is also conducted. The core and specific contents of this study on structural tax reduction policy that has been enforced in China over the past decade are arranged.


Author(s):  
Timm Luciano Benetti ◽  
Verçosa Fabiane

This chapter highlights labour law arbitration in Brazil. Traditionally, labour law in Brazil recognises two main groups of rights: individual and collective rights. Individual labour relations are concerned with the relationship between individual workers and their employers. Collective labour relations refer to the social relationships generated through processes of consultation and negotiation—over working conditions, labour standards, and other employment issues—between, on the one hand, the workers' collective or their representatives and, on the other hand, the employers or employers’ organization. Even before the Labour Legislation Reform of 2017, Brazilian legal order already provided in its Constitution and in other legal statutes the possibility of arbitration for collective labour rights. On the other hand, before the promulgation of the Labour Legislation Reform, there was no provision under Brazilian Law that would open the possibility of arbitration in the event of individual labour disputes.


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