also: こうしょくくみあい
company union; yellow union
A labor union that is controlled or heavily influenced by the employer, often used pejoratively. The term 'yellow union' is a direct translation and carries the same negative connotation in English.
The company union at that factory simply followed the management's wishes.
The yellow union was criticized for not representing the true interests of the workers.
労働組合 is a general term for a labor union, while 黄色組合 specifically refers to a union that is employer-dominated or not genuinely independent.
御用組合 is a near-synonym also meaning a company-dominated union, but 黄色組合 is more directly calqued from English 'yellow union' and may be used in international contexts.
Standard kanji spelling; 黄色 means 'yellow' and 組合 means 'union'.
Alternate reading using the less common こうしょく for 黄色; learners should prefer おうしょくくみあい.
Calque from English 'yellow union', combining 黄色 (yellow) and 組合 (union). The term 'yellow' in this context originates from early 20th-century labor movements, where it denoted unions that were seen as cowardly or subservient to employers.