In the Name of the Working Class: Narratives of Labour Activism in Contemporary China
Date
2019
Authors
Franceschini, Ivan
Sorace, Christian
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
UBC Press
Abstract
Since their appearance in the mid-1990s, Chinese labour NGOs have mostly
focused on disseminating labour law and guiding labour disputes through
official channels. In so doing, they have assisted the Chinese Communist
Party in achieving its paramount goal of maintaining social stability. In
line with this approach, activists in these organizations have traditionally
framed their work in terms of “public interest” or “legality,” both of which
resonate with the hegemonic discourses of the Party-state. However, earlier
this decade a minority of Chinese labour activists began to employ some
new counterhegemonic narratives centred on the experience of the labour
movement and the practice of collective bargaining that attempted to recode
the proletarian experience outside of its official representation. In this paper
we analyze this discursive shift through the voices of the activists involved,
and argue that the rise of these new counterhegemonic voices was one
of the reasons that led to the Party-state cracking down on labour NGOs.
Description
Keywords
China, labour NGOs, labour activism, civil society, collective bargaining
Citation
Collections
Source
Pacific Affairs
Type
Journal article
Book Title
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License Rights
Restricted until
2099-12-31