"Cruel irony: China’s Communists are stamping out labor activism", 3 Jan 2016

…China’s labor nongovernmental organizations have suffered regular rounds of repression and harassment…But this most recent repression is more serious. It seems that the Communist Party is intent on stamping out labor activism in civil society once and for all…

In fact, labor NGOs play a productive role in resolving such disputes…labor NGOs advise strikers on how to formulate their demands, elect representatives and engage in collective negotiations with employers to resolve the underlying violations, and sometimes even assist in reaching agreements governing future relations…Unfortunately…NGOs are viewed as threatening state power as well as the interests of employers…

Part of the problem is that the state-controlled All-China Federation of Trade Unions claims an absolute monopoly on representing and advocating for China’s workers, but in reality does little of either…If the government were serious about improving labor relations, it would require trade unions to learn from these NGO leaders…[refers to Honda & Lide Footware]