How do enterprise union frames affect union effectiveness in China?

The prevailing stereotype that Chinese enterprise unions are inherently ineffective is being challenged as scholars observe increasing discrepancies in union's organisational capacities to advance workers’ interests. This study proceeds through a comparative case study of six enterprise unions in a coastal economic and technological development area in China from 2017 to 2018. The findings reveal that the enterprise union frame ranges from complete subordination (communicative bridging) to greater integration (constructive bridging) and ultimately to relative proactivity (critical bridging). Each category of the enterprise union frame represents a distinct interpretation of the union's bridging role within the context of union functions. Additionally, the findings show that each enterprise union frame translates into different collective bargaining patterns that affect union effectiveness. Specifically, the communicative bridging frame is characterised by the absence of substantive collective bargaining, the constructive bridging frame is linked to targeted wage growth bargaining, and the critical bridging frame is associated with structured wage growth bargaining.