Union Commitment and Participation in the Chinese Context.

The authors of this article sought to test a model based on a meta analysis by Bamberger, Kluger and Suchard on the effects of job satisfaction and union instrumentality on union commitment on a sample of union members from the People's Republic of China. The previous study had found that attitudes favorable to unions have a stronger direct effect on union commitment than does union instrumentality. They also found that union commitment has an effect on participation in the union. The authors note that the North American results of the previous study may not generalize to China because of institutional differences between the function of unions. In China, unions generally provide employees with services and representation while at the same time acting as an agent of the government in the resolution of disputes and other issues.