The economic struggle of the working class in China

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Trade Unions Urged to Play Active Role in Re-employment of Laid-off
People's Daily, Saturday 28 September 2002. A senior Chinese official has urged trade unions to play a positive role in assisting laid-off factory workers to find new jobs, as part of the broader objectives of reform, development and stability.
Protests in China ahead of Congress
BBC News, Monday, 4 November 2002. Some 1,400 laid-off state workers have protested against corruption and unpaid benefits in north-eastern China, just days before the ruling Communist Party holds a key congress.
The current labor union election in China cannot effectively protect labor rights
By Li Qiang, Executive Director of China Labor Watch, China Labor Watch, 1 August 2003. These officially-controlled labor union elections are still political disguises of Chinese government to alleviate international pressure and to combat the domestic movement for independent Labor Union in China.
China unions take on organizing challenge
By Roberta Wood, People's Weekly World, 6 December 2003. Organizing workers in the private sector is a new challenge to Chinese trade unions. State-owned enterprises make up the bulk of China's economy, and workers there have many of their benefits set by the workers' congresses. Chinese unions have had fewer difficulties organizing workers at joint ventures with Japanese and European companies.
When Chinese Workers Unite, the Bosses Often Run the Union
By Joseph Kahn, The New York Times (International Edition), 29 December 2003. The struggle to unionize workers at Neil Pryde, a leading maker of sailing and windsurfing gear, is emblematic of the battle workers are waging to earn basic rights in China's fast-growing export industries.
Difficulties promoting collective negotiation on wages in private enterprises
Asian Labour News, 11 October 2004. In many private enterprises, collective negotiations on wages are hardly promoted at all. Workers' wages depend on the decision of enterprises, and trade unions experience difficulties in developing an effective role to play. There are several factors that cause difficulties in developing collective negotiations on wages in private enterprises.