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Shall we dance? Welfarist incorporation and the politics of state-labour NGO relations in China

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  • Howell, Jude

Abstract

State-labour NGOs relations in China have been particularly fraught. In 2012 these took an interesting twist, as some local governments made overtures to labour NGOs to co-operate in providing services to migrant workers. This article argues that this shift is part of a broader strategy of `welfarist incorporation’ to redraw the social contract between state and labour. There are two key elements to this: first, relaxation of the registration regulations for social organisations; second, governmental purchasing of services from social organisations. These overtures have both a state and market logic to maintain social control and stabilise relations of production.

Suggested Citation

  • Howell, Jude, 2015. "Shall we dance? Welfarist incorporation and the politics of state-labour NGO relations in China," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 60219, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    • Handle: RePEc:ehl:lserod:60219
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    File URL: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/60219/
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Michele Ford, 2006. "Labour NGOs: An Alternative Form of Labour Organizing in Indonesia, 1991--1998," Asia Pacific Business Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 12(2), pages 175-191, April.
    2. White, Gordon & Howell, Jude A. & Shang Xiaoyuan,, 1996. "In Search of Civil Society: Market Reform and Social Change in Contemporary China," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198289562.
    3. Eli Friedman & Ching Kwan Lee, 2010. "Remaking the World of Chinese Labour: A 30‐Year Retrospective," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 48(3), pages 507-533, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Enjuto Martinez, Regina & Qu, Yuanyuan & Howell, Jude, 2022. "Effects of government contracting of services on NGOs in China: convergence and divergence with international experience," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 111521, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    2. Herrold Catherine & Atia Mona, 2016. "Competing Rather than Collaborating: Egyptian Nongovernmental Organizations in Turbulence," Nonprofit Policy Forum, De Gruyter, vol. 7(3), pages 389-407, September.
    3. Manfred Elfstrom, 2019. "A Tale of Two Deltas: Labour Politics in Jiangsu and Guangdong," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 57(2), pages 247-274, June.
    4. Zejin Liu & Steven Van de Walle, 2022. "The role of demonstration projects as policy instruments in the development of nonprofit organizations: Beyond instrumentality," Public Administration & Development, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 42(4), pages 233-244, October.

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    JEL classification:

    • E6 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook

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