La politique de l'emploi en Pologne au cours des années 1960-1970

Abstract

Poland's Employment Policy in the Period 1960-1972. Polish employment policies in the postward period are characterized by two distinct phases. In the first phase from 1945 until early 1960's there occurred a very rapid expansion of employment while the labor force grew rather slowly. From 1963 onwards, the labour force grew rapidly, while the rate of employment increase began to decline. As a result, substantial unemployment appeared both in the industry and in agriculture. Vocational education and technical training of the labour force proceeded at a rapid pace throughout the first period. Remarkable achievements were accomplished in training of technicians and engineers. However, the expansion of higher education came to a stop in the mid 1960's and the utilization and deployment of the highly skilled labour force was frequently faulty and wasteful. Slow growth of employment was due to a drop in the rate of an overall industrial expansion, to unbalanced allocation of resources, to investment in capital goods industries, rather than in consumer goods industries and services. Poor economic performance was also caused by excessive centralization, incompetent management and reliance on administrative methods, instead of on the free play of the market forces, and the mechanism of market prices, wages and other incomes. Poor system of work incentives hindered the rise of productivity ; low labour productivity resulted in low wages, insufficient personal incomes and low living standards. This in turn generated wide spread discontent of the population which led to an open workers' rebellion in 1970, and subsequently forced the party leaders to change their economic policies. The new economic policies adopted by the VI Party Congress in June 1972 reestablished the balance in favour of consumer goods production, raised money and real wages, provided stronger incentives for productivity increases and endeavoured to create more jobs for the rapidly growing labor force in the 1970's. '