collective bargaining

American  

noun

1. the process by which wages, hours, rules, and working conditions are negotiated and agreed upon by a union with an employer for all the employees collectively whom it represents.

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collective bargaining British  

noun

1. negotiation between one or more trade unions and one or more employers or an employers' organization on the incomes and working conditions of the employees

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collective bargaining Cultural  

1. Negotiations by representatives of a group of employees, often a labor union, pertaining to conditions of employment, such as wages and working conditions.

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Etymology

Origin of collective bargaining

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

collective bargaining

Doing so would be a violation of Article 13 of the NBA collective bargaining agreement, punishable by a $7.5-million fine, the loss of a first-round draft pick and the voiding of Leonard’s contract.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026

The city’s police union said Wednesday that the city failed to meet and confer with it over any of the proposals at the LAPD, as required under the collective bargaining process.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026

Many unionized workers were locked into collective bargaining agreements that didn’t anticipate the extraordinary rise in inflation and lacked the cost-of-living adjustments that were far more common in the 1970s and 1980s.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 10, 2026

Yahoo reported recently that the SEC is studying how a world with collective bargaining might work.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 4, 2026

After collective bargaining failed, Carnegie shut down its Homestead plant and locked out the union workers.

From "Fannie Never Flinched" by Mary Cronk Farrell