collective bargaining

Syllable breakdown

Dictionary meaning

the process through which workers acting collectively through a recognised trade union negotiate with employers over the terms and conditions of employment including wages, working hours, safety standards, benefits, grievance procedures, and job security, leveraging the bargaining power of collective action to achieve outcomes that individual workers could not secure in bilateral negotiations against economically more powerful employers; collective bargaining is protected in most democratic countries by labour law frameworks that require employers to negotiate in good faith, prohibit retaliation against union activity, and establish mechanisms for resolving impasses through mediation or arbitration rather than unilateral employer action