A Study on Bargaining Subjects of Teachers' Unions in Taiwan: Evidence from Public Elementary and Secondary Schools

Since the implementation of the new Labor Union Act on May 1, 2011, teachers are allowed to form unions. One of their objectives is to exercise the right of collective bargaining with their employers to enter into an agreement. Nonetheless, it has been more than five years since the implementation of the new Labor Union Act; successful cases of collective agreements signed by teachers’ unions have been scarce. Also, among the cases related to unfair labor practices received and decided by The Board for Decision on the Unfair Labor Practices, the applications filed by teachers’ unions accounted for 11.5%, most of which were disputes with regard to collective bargaining. The aforementioned suggests that there are many unsolved issues regarding the process of collective bargaining. This thesis will study the processes of and the subjects addressed in collective bargaining. My aim is to help resolve the problems faced by teachers while they are undergoing collective bargaining and to facilitate the further development of teachers’ collective bargaining. With this aim, the second chapter of this thesis will first discuss the evolution of teachers’ labor rights, the organization of teachers’ unions, and the employers of teachers who work for public schools in order to build up basic concepts for subsequent discussions. In chapter three, this thesis will divide the process of collective bargaining into three stages – preparation, bargaining, and entering into an agreement. Thorny issues in each stage will be identified and analyzed. The scope and criteria for collective bargaining demanded by teachers’ unions will also be discussed. The result will be the basis of analysis for issues discussed during teachers’ collective bargaining in the next chapter. In the fourth chapter, this thesis will make an effort to collect and analyze subjects that concern teachers’ unions and which employers are mandated to undergo collective bargaining. In the last chapter, a conclusion will be reached and suggestions will be presented based on the discussion and analysis made in the preceding chapters with a view to be helpful in the collective bargaining practices of teachers’ unions.