Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Shanghai Wal-Mart signs group contract with trade union

According to Xinhua Net, the Shanghai branch of the US retail giant Wal-Mart and its subordinate supermarkets have signed a breakthrough group contract with their employees, marking the formal establishment of collective negotiation system between employers and employees, said the Shanghai Federation of Trade Unions.

Covering nearly 1000 workers in Shanghai, the group contract includes some substantive provisions about core issues concerning employee's interest, such as remuneration, work hours, vacation, insurance and welfare. Details include the establishment of salary negotiation system, under which in each December trade union and the company negotiate the next year's general growth rate of employees' wages. It specifies an average salary increase of 8% in 2008 and 2009. Besides, another 1% increase will be provided for promotion and other special problems. The company's minimum wage is apparently higher than that of Shanghai municipal. Employees who work for more than three years have the right to sign a labor contract which enables employees to stay in the company without a fixed deadline.

Shanghai will gradually promote employer-and-employee negotiation system in more of the local branches of top-500 companies, said Mao Ronghua, vice director of the Shanghai Federation of Trade Unions.

By People's Daily Online

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