Collective bargaining can be defined as the institutionalized process by which workers (usually combined into unions) negotiate with employers with the aim of jointly determining terms and conditions of employment. Collective bargaining is institutionalized because the process in each country and industry is circumscribed by laws, customs and rituals which make the parties' relationships predictable.

Collective bargaining can be justified on the assumption that bargaining between management and individual employees gives management an unfair advantage. To counterbalance this advantage, employees band together to bargain collectively. There are substantial differences in forms of collective bargaining, depending on the nature of representation, bargaining structure and the nature of the agreement. Despite these differences, however, collective bargaining tends to follow a fairly common procedure, during which both parties employ various tactics to put pressure on each other and middlemen or third-party negotiators often play a key role. Bargaining has tended to be dependent on union strength, but with unions on the decline and new forms of workplace participation emerging, it is difficult to see what the future of collective bargaining will be.

George Strauss