Meaning & use
collective bargaining
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Meanings
noununcountablebusiness
the process in which a union and an employer discuss and agree on pay, hours, and working conditions for a group of workers.
Grammar: No article and no plural: 'Collective bargaining is protected by law.'
Patterns
- collective bargaining with someone
- collective bargaining agreement
- engage in collective bargaining
The union began collective bargaining with management over wages.
Collective bargaining gave the workers a better health plan.
After months of collective bargaining, the two sides reached a deal.
noununcountablebusinesslegal
the right or practice of workers negotiating as a group rather than individually.
Grammar: Often used in legal or political contexts: 'laws protecting collective bargaining'.
Patterns
- right to collective bargaining
- protect collective bargaining
The new law weakened the right to collective bargaining.
She wrote her thesis on the history of collective bargaining in factories.
Common combinations
- collective bargaining agreement
- The collective bargaining agreement sets the pay scale for all employees.
- collective bargaining rights
- Workers marched to defend their collective bargaining rights.
- collective bargaining process
- The collective bargaining process can take several months.
- engage in collective bargaining
- Both sides agreed to engage in collective bargaining in good faith.
Synonyms and how they differ
- negotiation
- A general word for any discussion aimed at an agreement; 'collective bargaining' is specifically between a union and an employer.
- labor talks
- An informal term for the same process, often used in news reports.
Word family
- collective adjective
- done by or shared among a group of people.
- bargain verb
- to discuss something in order to reach an agreement.
Commonly confused: collective bargaining or collective agreement?
collective bargaining vs collective agreement
The 'collective agreement' is the final contract; 'collective bargaining' is the process of negotiating it.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'collective bargaining' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Collective bargaining' is an uncountable process, so it takes no article and no plural. The other options treat it as a countable object or event, which is wrong.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “collective bargaining”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.