Giving collectivization a go

Workplace bargaining revamp could give workers room to negotiate, carefully

Dozens of businesses in Beijing have been selected to take part in a collective bargaining test intended to establish more reasonable wage standards for workers and try to resolve long-existing problems with instituting a platform for negotiation between employers and employees.

About 60 companies located in all of the capital's 18 districts and counties are participating in the study. The companies are small-to medium-sized and come from industries, including security, and housekeeping, said Huang Wei, director of the labor rights department of the Beijing Municipal Federation of Trade Unions, which is overseeing the research.