Labour inspection in contemporary China: Like the Anglo-Saxon model, but different

Abstract

The authors examine the lack of enforcement of China's increasing body of labour legislation, showing how, since the 1980s, the country's labour inspection system has evolved into a system resembling the Anglo-Saxon model - characterized by fragmentation and reactive regulatory practices - but with highly selective and non-coercive state enforcement. This "hybrid" labour inspection model stems from the combination of neoliberal reforms with the Leninist legacy of the authoritarian regime. More effective enforcement of labour law would, the authors suggest, require greater tripartite cooperation and social dialogue in the regulatory process, and the involvement of an independently organized industrial labour force.