Labour contracts in China: Do they protect workers' rights?

The introduction of employment contracts is the most significant change in China's employment relations in the era of reform. This paper looks at their development and implementation, and analyses their role in determining labour terms. This paper suggests that the individual labour contract system is typically a double-edged sword to Chinese workers. On one hand it has ended the guaranteed state employment, and replaced the statemaster relations with the employeremployee relations, in which Chinese employees are disadvantaged; Chinese workers have gained the freedom of changing employment and self-employment, on the other. The new labour contract law, if enacted, will be more effective in safeguarding the rights of employees and building a harmonious employment relationship. This paper also argues that the collective contract system is not the outcome of collective bargaining as trade unions are not the independent bargaining agent in China. There is a fairly limited role for collective agreements in determining labour terms.