Exploring Pathways for the Realization of Educational Trade Unions’ Responsibilities under the Context of Personnel System Reform

Abstract

Protecting the legitimate rights and interests of faculty and staff is a fundamental responsibility of the university trade union. Reforms in higher education personnel systems have diversified the legal relationships between universities and faculty members, gradually shifting from an administrative model toward market-oriented and contractual arrangements. This transformation significantly affects the legal status and rights protection of faculty members and poses new demands on the performance of duties by education trade unions. However, the entrenched mindset and working of education trade unions—prioritizing education over rights protection—have led to problems such as ambiguous delineation of responsibilities, excessive formalism, and weak capacity for rights advocacy. The paper analyzes the role-related dilemmas faced by China’s education trade unions in institutional reform from several dimensions. It conducts a step-by-step examination by referencing specific legal provisions, and drawing on the experiences of education trade unions abroad, proposes concrete measures to optimize their functions—such as embracing new guiding principles, enhancing collective bargaining, and improving grievance redress mechanisms.