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

Article 6 of the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement appears to allow the league to determine each year whether to hold a supplemental draft for players who become eligible to play after the regular NFL draft.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 23, 2026

Developmental contracts were introduced this year as part of the league’s new collective bargaining agreement.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 15, 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