Polish Trade Unions Research Articles

Polskie związki zawodowe w procesie zarządzania algorytmicznego w środowisku pracy

The article concerns the role of Polish trade unions in creating a legal framework for the tech-based employment. The authors discuss the impact of the algorithmic management on the structure of the employment relationship and justify the need to protect workers. Social partners can play an important role in shaping this protection. The article discusses the legal instruments which can be used by trade unions. The text outlines the actual picture of collective relations in the technological area. The authors consider the reasons of the weakness of the social dialogue and analyze solutions which could contribute to improving the situation.

Platform work as a manifestation of a new form of employment in the era of the fourth industrial revolution

The aim of this paper is to analyse a new form of employment which has appeared in the Polish labour market in recent years, i.e. work via digital platforms. The author discusses the issue of platform work in the context of its impact on the current labour market. Particular attention is paid to the identification of threats connected with this new form of employment, the demands of the European and Polish trade unions put forward in relation to platform workers and the regulations planned in this field at the EU level. The author also shares his reflections on the practices applied by the owners of digital platforms and the effective method of their control by Member States.

Gains and pitfalls of coalitions: Societal resources as sources of trade union power in Croatia and Poland

This article explores the experiences of trade unions in Croatia and Poland with societal power resources as a source of trade union revitalisation in the post-2008 crisis period. In the context of limited structural, organisational and institutional power resources, Croatian and Polish trade unions attempted to build their societal power through the revitalisation strategies of coalition building and political action. The paper compares three similar, partially successful campaigns run in both countries, on pensions, Sunday trading and precarious work. Our findings show that gains in societal power alone cannot fully compensate for the erosion of conventional sources of trade union power. Such a configuration of power resources runs the danger of trade union demands being taken up by populist forces wanting to increase their own legitimacy, rather than furthering workers’ interests. Therefore, what starts as an attempt at union revitalisation based on the novel use of societal resources could easily end up as ‘captured innovation’ by populist forces.

BARRIERS AND FACILITATORS TO ACTIVE AGEING AS VIEWED BY EMPLOYERS AND TRADE UNIONS. SNAPSHOTS FROM POLAND

The ageing of populations is a global challenge occurring in most countries, including Poland. It is believed that its impacts can be mitigated by developing and implementing the concept of active and healthy ageing. A large number of activities aimed at retaining older workers in employment can be created and carried out in the workplace with the participation of social partners, and many factors can support or hinder their cooperation. This qualitative study of barriers and facilitators to active ageing was carried out within a conceptual framework that combines the findings of rational choice theory, activity theory, and life course theory. Both barriers and facilitators are presented based on the opinions of Polish employers and trade union members collected during individual in-depth interviews (IDI) and workshop meetings (WM). These respondents and the research methodology used make the study the only one of its kind. As the first step, the five levels of barriers and facilitators to active ageing were identified: macro, sectoral and community, organisational, interpersonal, and individual. It turned out that the social partners believed that the majority of both barriers and facilitators to active ageing occurred at the macro level; therefore, only this perspective was presented. The interviews and workshop outcomes pointed to the need for cooperation and dialogue between active ageing stakeholders. They also revealed a large number of good active ageing practices in organisations and stressed the need to increase public awareness of the advisability of extending working lives.

Trade unions challenges in organising Polish workers: A comparative case study of British and Swiss trade union strategies

This article analyses challenges in organising Polish workers by Unison (UK) and Unia (Switzerland). Using case studies of projects delivered by those unions with the aim to enhancing inclusion of Polish workers, the article argues that the internal union dynamics, such as union identity and structures are instrumental for a sustainable organisation of migrant members. Furthermore, the example of Unia demonstrates that an important factor for successful organising of Polish workers was the recognition of their collective agency and their contribution to union revitalisation. Finally, the research demonstrates that previous membership in Polish trade unions was not a significant factor influencing their involvement in British and Swiss workers’ movements.

Lithuania's Demarcation of Information from Poland's Solidarity Movement in 1980-1981

The aim of the article: Despite the fact that everything we know in Polish history about the emergence of Solidarity [Polish: Solidarność], Polish trade unions, in 1980-1981, and the conflict with the communist totalitarian regime is described in sources as ‘the Polish Crisis’, the question remains open about the contemporaneous deepening communication crisis of the communist government in Lithuania, whose history had long – until the middle of the 20th century – been very closely linked to the development of Poland. From 1951 to 1989, Lithuania was separated from Poland by a double barbed-wire Soviet border barrier without any border crossing points. Nevertheless, the author proposes delving into what type of information control measures the Soviet regime used in influencing the Lithuanian people by undermining their interest in the workers’ strikes and the expanding trade union movement in Poland 40 years ago, trying to set Lithuanians against Polish society, and also how the media in the West helped renew the dialogue between Lithuanian and Polish diaspora organisations. Research methods: The author performed a content analysis of KGB documents in the Lithuanian Special Archives and examined the content of the Lithuanian SSR mass media and the mass media of the Lithuanian diaspora in the United States. Results and conclusions: The Soviet concept of security that was implemented by the repressive structure of the KGB was largely associated with the restriction of information, censorship and self-censorship of the population. However, it was also associated with the recruitment of Lithuanian citizens into ongoing cooperation with the secret service to collect data about Polish people who were ‘disloyal’ to the regime and transfer information to the security service of communist Poland, so the content of these reports must be disclosed. Cognitive value: Thus, the article provides the broader context, in which the content of the propaganda press is only one element of the system that controlled the public space.

Wpływy komunistyczne w związkach zawodowych w II Rzeczpospolitej. Stan badań, postulaty badawcze

This article discusses the problem of communist activity in the Polish trade union movement in the years 1918–1939. It seems that communists’ influence on trade unions was greatest at the beginning of the Second Polish Republic, in the early 1930s, and in the years 1936–1937. The author presents the state of research on this topic and formulates research questions for the future.

The march of climate policy

The march of climate policy

Editorial

INTERNATIONAL union rights Page 2 Volume 23 Issue 2 2016 IUR ❐ EDITORIAL Editorial: Trade union rights after the UK’s vote to leave the EU T his edition of IUR looks at the implications of what was, for many, an unexpected development with potentially far-reaching consequences : in June, UK voters voted to leave the European Union, by a margin of 52 to 48 percent in an average turnout of 72.2 percent. Owen Tudor of the British TUC (which campaigned for a Remain vote), but expresses concern : ‘the European Union has played a central role in protecting working people from exploitation , combating discrimination and promoting good employment practices’, while ‘UK governments strongly resisted equal treatment rights for agency workers, working time limits, and rights for workers to receive [workplace information and consultation]. During the referendum, only four trade unions officially called for a vote to leave the EU, while most other unions (including the country’s largest unions) called for a remain vote. Yet, as Alex Gordon points out, ‘analysis of the voting patterns revealed in the referendum result demonstrates a majority of working class voters, particularly in Britain’s former industrial heartlands; the north of England, Midlands and South Wales, voted (and in significantly large numbers) to leave the EU’ Trying to gauge international perspectives on ‘Brexit’, IUR uncovered clear concern at the deteriorating attitude towards Polish workers in the UK being expressed by the Polish trade union centre OPZZ, which has observed that ‘the campaign was won by xenophobia and populism, and as a result of exit from the EU, the situation for the majority of British people will worsen’. Esther Lynch of the ETUC observes that ‘the EU as a whole now faces a very difficult challenge … the anger and disillusionment of working people with the EU is not confined to the UK’, and adds that ‘social rights, in particular […] trade union rights, are not being accorded equal weight and emphasis compared with the protection and promotion of employers’ economic freedoms’. To address this urgent situation , Esther argues that ‘collective bargaining systems have to be restored as a fundamental right and because a pay rise for workers in Europe is central to a fair recovery from the crisis. The adoption of a social progress protocol is urgently required to restore the proper balance between economic freedoms and fundamental social rights in particular trade union rights’. Into this dynamic context, IUR welcomes the timely launch of the Manifesto for Labour Law: towards a comprehensive revision of workers’ rights, produced by the UK’s Institute for Employment Rights (IER). Observing that ‘the UK has ‘a framework of law born out of 19th century conditions, which has bypassed many advances of the 20th century, which ignores today’s economic and workplace realities, and which is not fit for purpose in 21st century Britain’, IER calls for the ‘restoration’ of the principles of collective bargaining ‘to provide a means of workplace democracy , to bring some measure of balance to the otherwise disproportionate power of employers, to redress wage inequality, to prevent the exploitation of migrants, to raise wages, increase demand and reinvigorate the economy, and to fulfil the UK’s binding legal obligations’. As Jon Jeffries reminds us, however, April this year saw the passing into law of the much-criticised Trade Union Act 2016. While parts of the original Bill were stopped (in part due to trade union negotiations linked to the then impending EU referendum) Jon Jeffries examines how the role of the Certification Officer was re-written. Looking at the trade union scene elsewhere; we report on unpopular changes to French labour law and the response of unions and youth movements; on Turkey we assess the trade union rights situation before and in the immediate aftermath of the failed coup attempt; we hear from David Bacon of the appalling treatment meted out to striking teachers in Mexico; report on the shocking sentence handed down to a South Korean trade union leader; and we publish a report back from the Global Labour Institute’s trade union summer school. Daniel Blackburn, Editor Next issue of IUR Articles between 850 and 1,900 words should be sent by email (mail...

ROLA ZWIĄZKÓW ZAWODOWYCH W PODNOSZENIU KWALIFIKACJI PRACOWNIKÓW

THE ROLE OF TRADE UNIONS IN THE ENHANCEMENT OF EMPLOYEES’ QUALIFICATIONS Summary The aim of this article is to discuss the enhancement of employees’ qualifications as an area for the potential joint involvement of Polish trade unions and employers’ organisations, and particularly for the assessment of the negotiability of solutions to remedy the current situation, which is giving rise to concern. The author attempts to answer the question whether the policy pursued by Polish trade unions entails a commitment to the idea that the enhancement of professional qualifications may serve as an efficient tool to secure jobs. The same question is also put with respect to employers, who do not appear to be very interested in negotiating such issues or even in general in Staff training, either. The attitude of diffidence may be explained by the fact that in comparison with the 15 member states of the pre-2004 EU, in Poland entrepreneurs receive a relatively low level of state support for continuing professional training for their staff. This observation applies not only to insufficient fiscal incentives but also to inadequate counselling services. In the author’s opinion collective bargaining on effective professional training and qualification enhancement programmes cannot be conducted without a profound transformation of the model for the allocation of financing from the Labour Fund. This should also entail raising the joint responsibility of employers and trade unions, which cannot be done unless an incentive in the form of tax relief on professional training courses comes from the legislator. Until such changes are introduced, the issue will continue to be perceived as it has been up to now – as a matter concerning an individual’s right to work, not as the collective interest of employees represented by their trade unions.

Weak Labour, Strong Interests: Polish Trade Unions and the Integration of EU Energy and Service Markets

AbstractThis paper examines the motives behind the EU‐level activism of CEE trade unions, which are commonly regarded as weak actors. To this end, it studies lobbying and protest actions staged by Polish labour organizations in relation to proposals for the EU Emission Trading Scheme Directive and the EU Services Directive. The analysis confirms the salience of interest‐based accounts of supranational union action, but it also shows that labour interests are context‐specific, influenced by economic conditions and regulatory changes in particular market segments. In this regard, priority given by the unions to job preservation or the improvement of social standards has important implications for their positions; it also determines the selection of their allies at national and transnational levels.

Polish trade unions and social dumping debates

This article examines the stances of Polish trade unions on EU enlargement, intra-EU labour mobility and EU service market liberalization. It shows that, despite the liberal rhetoric embraced by mainstream media and successive Polish governments, the country’s labour organizations did not lend their support to the logic of low-cost competitiveness. The article accounts for this stance by referring to the insider-outsider theorem. It argues that whereas transnationally mobile workers and self-employed individuals (the ‘outsiders’) could make use of short-term cost advantages, the domestic workforce (the ‘insiders’) benefited from the gradual improvement of employment conditions in Poland and their convergence with western standards. The desire to cater to the interests of the insiders made the unions reject social dumping and defend the west European social ‘archetype’ to which their countrymen aspired.

Political Parties and Trade Unions in the Post–Communist Poland: Class Politics that Have Never a Chance to Happen

Trade unions in Poland have not built the stable and long–term relations with political parties as are observed in Western democracies. By analysing the historical and symbolic background of the transformation to a democratic civil society and free market economy, political preferences of working class, trade union membership rates, and public opinion polls, we argue that, in case of Poland, the initial links between political parties and trade unions weakened over time. Polish trade unions never had a chance to become a long–term intermediary between society and political parties, making the Polish case study a double exception from the traditional models.

Struggling Against the Bomb or Against the Bloc Divide? The Dutch Peace Movement and Eastern Europe

Between 1977 and 1985, the Dutch peace movement united against the deployment of new nuclear weapons on Dutch soil. Discussions about ‘Eastern Europe’, however, challenged this unity. On the one hand, in order to establish bilateral disarmament in both blocs, the leading Dutch peace group Interchurch Peace Council (IKV) looked for alliances with social movements in Eastern Europe, for instance with the Polish trade union movement Solidarność and the Czechoslovakian dissident movement Charta 77. On the other hand, the broader Dutch peace movement and church circles had doubts about this new focus, fearing that it could harm existing contacts with communist organizations and institutions. Despite these misgivings, the IKV continued to develop its policy towards Eastern Europe. Initially, it encountered opposition from communist regimes and skepticism from dissidents. Only after the disarmament struggle in the Netherlands ended in 1985 and Gorbachev opened the door for change in Eastern Europe, did the IKV succeed in establishing a more enduring contact. Nevertheless, the policy remained controversial within the Dutch peace movement and church circles as a whole.

Strategies of Interest Representation: Polish Trade Unions in EU Governance

Poland's European Union accession afforded Polish trade unions membership of European-wide, umbrella trade union organisations. This essay evaluates the strategies Polish trade unions adopted to represent their interests following Poland's accession to the European Union. It draws on a series of interviews and document analysis. In addition the essay seeks to gauge the extent to which Polish trade unions were ‘Europeanised’, understood in both the context of their adoption of European policy models and their ability to win support for their causes at the European level.

Tadeusz Kowalik: Radical Political Economist, Solidarity Advisor and Critic of Globalised Capitalism

The work is an obituary of Tadeusz Kowalik, the doyen of Polish political economists, who died in Warsaw on July 30th, 2012. In the English-speaking world Kowalik is best known as the last surviving collaborator of Michal Kalecki, an advisor to the Polish trade union Solidarity during the 1980s, and subsequently as a fierce critic of the brand of capitalism that established itself in his country. In his works he challenged both the commonly accepted view of the ‘Keynesian Revolution’ and the inability of Polish communists to come to terms with their revolutionary past and find a place for themselves in the modern world. JEL Codes: B32, B24, E12

Tadeusz Kowalik and the Accumulation of Capital

Tadeusz Kowalik, the doyen of Polish political economists, died at his home in Warsaw on July 30, 2012. Kowalik is best known as the last surviving coauthor of the great Polish economist, Michał Kalecki (1899–1970), as an advisor to the Polish trade union movement Solidarity when it played a key part in bringing down the Communist government in the 1980s, and subsequently as a fierce critic of the capitalism that was put in its place. He challenged both the commonly accepted view of the Keynesian Revolution and the inability of Polish Communists to come to terms with their revolutionary past and find a place for themselves in the modern world.This article can also be found at the Monthly Review website, where most recent articles are published in full.Click here to purchase a PDF version of this article at the Monthly Review website.

Women’s union activism and trade union revitalization: The Polish experience

This article discusses the role of grassroots women’s activism for trade union revitalization in the new capitalist economies in Eastern Europe by examining the case of Poland. The analysis of 23 expert interviews with trade union leaders and 48 biographical interviews with company-level women unionists in private manufacturing and in the public sector suggests that women’s efforts to reclaim control over their occupational lives create a grassroots potential to revitalize trade unions. However, these positive developments are constrained by cultural and organizational factors which limit women’s full access to decision-making bodies in the largest Polish trade union confederations.

Lobbying Allies? The NSZZ Solidarność Coordinating Office Abroad, 1982–1989

After the proclamation of martial law in Poland in December 1981, a Solidarność Coordinating Office Abroad was set up. Led by Jerzy Milewski, the organization eliminated any internal opposition and succeeded in being recognized by most Western partners as the foreign representative of Solidarność. The Coordinating Office received most of its financial aid from trade union internationals and from the United States. Initially, the Coordinating Office was active mainly within international institutions such as the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe and the International Labor Organization. From 1984 onward, the organization sought to influence senior politicians and governments and became an important reminder to the Western world of the Polish crisis, as well as providing financial and material aid to the banned Polish trade union. However, it did not have a definitive impact on policymaking and remained largely dependent on its allied organizations.

Negotiating ‘solidarity’ and internationalism: the response of Polish trade unions to migration

ABSTRACTIn the context of massive outward migration after Poland's accession to the EU in 2004, this article explores the possibilities for cross‐border collaboration by Polish trade unions. The findings are based on interviews with the two main trade union/trade union federations, Solidarity and Ogolnopolskie Porozumnie Związków Zawodowych: All‐Poland Alliance of Trade Unions, at national, regional and sectoral levels. Examining the issues and challenges faced by Polish trade unions in terms of loss of membership and social capital, the article also evaluates the significance of Poland's status as a country of some inward migration. It is argued that cross‐border trade union collaboration has become an even more urgent project as the economic crisis intensifies competition in the labour market and increases the potential for xenophobia.