{{main|Trade unions in the Soviet Union|All-China Federation of Trade Unions}}
[[File:Strajk sierpniowy w Stoczni Gdańskiej im. Lenina 09.jpg|thumb|Lenin Shipyard workers, Poland, on strike in August 1980, with the name of the state-controlled trade union crossed out in protest]]
In some [[Marxism–Leninism|Marxist–Leninist]] states, such as the former [[Soviet Union|USSR]] or the [[People's Republic of China]], striking was illegal and viewed as [[counter-revolutionary]]. SinceIn theSoviet governmentUnion, instrikes suchhappened systemsthroughout claimsthe toexistence representof theUSSR, workingmost class,notably itin has1930s. beenAfter arguedWorld thatWar unions2 andthey strikesdiminished wereboth notin necessarynumber and in scale.<ref>{{citationCite neededweb|last=|first=Orlov V.N., Bogdanov S.V.|date=October|title=COLLECTIVE 2016LABOR CONFLICTS IN THE USSR IN 1930-1950s: REASONS OF OCCURRENCE, FORMS, WAYS OF RESOLUTION|url=http://www.yurclub.ru/docs/other/article143.html|url-status=live|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=|website=}}</ref> In 1976, China signed the [[International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights]], which guaranteed the right to unions and striking, but Chinese officials declared that they had no interest in allowing these liberties.<ref>"Still waiting for Nike to do it," by Tim Connor, page 70.</ref> (In June 2008, however, the municipal government in [[Shenzhen]] in southern China introduced draft labor regulations, which labor rights advocacy groups say would, if implemented, virtually restore Chinese workers' right to strike.<ref>[http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1173682 'Factory to the world will soon get the right to strike'], by Venkatesan Vembu, [[Daily News and Analysis]], 26 June 2008.</ref>) [[Trade unions in the Soviet Union]] served in part as a means to educate workers about the country's economic system. [[Vladimir Lenin]] referred to trade unions as "Schools of Communism". They were essentially state propaganda and control organs to regulate the workforce, also providing them with social activities.{{citation needed|date=October 2016}}
