Peter Ford discusses China’s unions, past and present:
“Once upon a time, when the Chinese Communist Party was fighting for a revolution, the trade unions that the party controlled were important pieces in the political chess game. Ever since 1949, however, the unions grouped in the All-China Federation of Trade Unions, the only federation allowed to exist, have simply been pawns of the government. Totally toothless, they were reduced to the role of organizing works outings and putting up large character banners proclaiming the government’s latest policies… But nowadays, the Chinese government is beginning to think twice about the social and economic costs of its headlong rush to development…”