Internationally-recognised core labour standards in Poland
Report for the WTO General Council Review of the trade politics of Poland (Geneva, 3 and 5 July 2000)
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Poland has ratified seven of the eight ILO core labour conventions. Further measures will be needed to comply with the commitments Poland accepted at Singapore in 1996 and Geneva in 1998 in the WTO Ministerial Declarations and in the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work adopted in June 1998.
The law on trade union rights does not protect workers adequately from employer victimisation and discrimination. Legal procedures and court rulings on strikes are slow and do not protect strikers from employer retribution.
Discrimination against women in employment persists in Poland, shown by significant salary gaps between women and men, higher unemployment and discrimination in recruitment practices.
There is no indication of any significant level of child labour or forced labour in Poland.
INTERNATIONALLY-RECOGNISED CORE LABOUR STANDARDS IN POLAND
Introduction
This report on the respect of internationally recognised core labour standards in Poland is one of the series the ICFTU is producing in accordance with the Ministerial Declaration adopted at the first Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) (Singapore, 9-13 December 1996) and endorsed at the second WTO Ministerial Conference (Geneva, 18-20 May 1998) in which the Ministers stated: “We renew our commitment to the observance of internationally recognised core labour standards.” These standards were further upheld in the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work adopted by the 174 member countries of the ILO at the International Labour Conference in June 1998.
This report was prepared in co-operation with the ICFTU's affiliate in Poland, Solidarnosc, with a membership of 1,200,000 workers. In total, trade union membership in Poland is about 13 per cent of the workforce.
I. Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining
In 1957, Poland ratified both ILO Convention No. 87 (1948), the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention and ILO Convention No. 98 (1949), the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention.
The law provides all civilian workers with the right to form and join trade unions. However, the 1991 Law on Trade Unions has not prevented employers from discriminating against workers who attempt to organise or join unions, particularly in the growing private sector. The law also has not prevented employer harassment of workers for trade union activity. The sanctions of employers provided for in the Law on Trade Unions are ineffective and the ILO Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations has called on the government to establish “sufficiently dissuasive sanctions against acts of anti-union discrimination and acts of interference by employers in workers' trade union activities.” The Committee has requested the Government to take measures in the near future to bring its legislation into conformity with the requirements of the Convention.
Violations of trade rights have increased in recent years. The most frequent violations are harassment of shop stewards, interference in trade unions' constitutional procedures, and threats and discrimination against union members. Pay rises are often given to workers who resign from unions. Contracts of union members and activists are changed. Union activists have inferior working conditions and risk being illegally fired. When in March 1999 the first union was created in the MiniMal supermarket chain in Walbrzych, the management tried to destroy the union through threats, blackmail and bribery.
Unions have the right to strike except in “essential services.” However, the 1991 Act on Collective Dispute Resolution prescribes an overly lengthy process before a strike may be called. As a result, as many as 60 to 90 percent of strikes called in recent years have been technically “illegal” because of not following each step exactly as required by law. Labour courts act slowly on deciding the legality of strikes. Laws prohibiting retribution against strikers are not enforced consistently, and the fines imposed as punishment are so minimal that they are ineffective. If a court rules a strike “illegal,” workers may lose social benefits, and organisers are liable for damages and may face civil charges and fines.
The law on trade union rights in Poland does not protect workers adequately from employer victimisation and discrimination. Legal procedures and court rulings on strikes are slow and do not protect strikers from employer retribution.
II. Discrimination and Equal Remuneration
Poland ratified ILO Convention No. 100 (1951), Equal Remuneration in 1954 and ILO Convention No. 111 (1958), Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) in 1961.
The Constitution provides for equal rights regardless of sex and grants women equal compensation for work of similar value. In practice, women frequently are paid less for equivalent work, mainly hold lower level positions than men and are first to be laid off. According to a 1998 government statistical bulletin, women have a higher unemployment rate (12 percent) than men (9 percent). Average female pay has fallen to about 70 percent of average male remuneration. Women's employment is exceptionally high in sectors where the wages are relatively low, and the ILO Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations has noted that, in the lowest wage group, women outnumber men by a ratio of 1.5:1. Women have difficulty gaining promotion, as shown by the figure that in 59% of Polish firms there is not a single woman in a managerial post. In August 1999 the U.N. Human Rights Commission expressed its concern about discrimination against women in the labour market.
The ILO Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations has observed that the factors used in job evaluation schemes often tend to favour men and has asked the government to ensure that gender-neutral factors are used in such schemes.
The new pension law passed in late 1998 maintained different mandatory retirement ages for women and men (60 and 65, respectively). This contributes to a pension benefit about 60 per cent lower for women, as compared to men.
The law does not address equality in hiring practices (there are no legal penalties for discriminatory behaviour in this area), and advertisements for jobs frequently indicate a gender preference. In job interviews, women are typically asked about family status whereas men are not. Women have suffered from the decline in social services as part of the transition to a market economy as they are expected disproportionately to assist with family care. Between 1989 and 1994, 59 percent of day care centres and 25 percent of kindergartens were shut.
In March 1999, the Parliament failed to approve a proposed law on equal status that would have remedied some of these inequalities.
Comprehensive laws addressing sexual harassment do not exist, but the new Criminal Code states that persons who take advantage of a position of power in a relationship to gain sexual gratification may be sentenced to up to 3 years in prison. However, there is no law concerning sexual harassment of one employee by another.
The Romani community, numbering around 40,000, faces disproportionately high unemployment and has been hit hard by economic restructuring.
In 1995 the Central Bureau of Statistics reported that the unemployment rate among the disabled was 17 percent, almost twice the rate for able-bodied persons. 57 percent of the disabled have no more than an elementary school education, compared with 30 percent of those without disabilities. A number of laws protect the rights of the disabled. However, implementation of those laws is insufficient.
Discrimination against women in employment persists in Poland, shown by significant salary gaps between women and men, higher unemployment and discrimination in recruitment practices.
III. Child Labour
Poland ratified ILO Convention No. 138 (1973), the Minimum Age Convention, in 1978. It has not yet ratified ILO Convention No. 182 (1999), the Worst Forms of Child Labour. In February 2000, Convention No. 182 was formally submitted by the government for tripartite consultation, a process which is still continuing.
The law forbids the employment of persons under the age of 15. Those between the ages of 15 and 18 may be employed only if they have completed primary school and if the proposed employment constitutes vocational training and is not harmful to their health. The age requirement for employment is 18 years for potentially dangerous jobs. Education is free and mandatory until age 18.
It is reported that prostitution among children as young as 12 is increasing.
There is no indication of any significant level of child labour in Poland.
IV. Forced Labour
In 1958, Poland ratified both ILO Convention No. 29 (1930), the Forced Labour Convention and ILO Convention No. 105 (1957), the Abolition of Forced Labour Convention.
In general there is no forced labour. However trafficking in women and children, while illegal, is a problem.
Forced labour is prohibited in Poland and does not occur on a large scale.
CONCLUSIONS
1. The government of Poland should take measures to ensure that law and practice are in compliance with internationally recognised core labour standards.
2. The Law on Trade Unions needs to be amended to provide increased sanctions against acts of anti-union discrimination and interference by employers in trade union activities. Legal provisions against harassment of trade unionists must be enforced effectively.
3. The Act on Collective Dispute Resolution should be reviewed to provide a workable process for industrial disputes to enable strikes to take place on a proper legal basis. Labour courts need to eliminate excessive delays and handle cases and take decisions in a timely manner. Laws prohibiting retribution against strikers must be enforced consistently, and the fines imposed on employers should be increased.
4. More active measures must be adopted to address wage gaps and occupational constraints on employment for women. Legal provisions are needed that effectively translate the Constitutional provisions for equal compensation into reality. Discrimination in hiring practices needs to be eliminated and more comprehensive laws should be adopted against sexual harassment. Gender-neutral factors should be used in job evaluation schemes. Measures are needed to ensure retired women workers receive equitable and adequate pensions.
5. The government should ensure better implementation of laws protecting the rights of the disabled.
6. Effective measures are needed to stop trafficking in women and children.
7. In line with the commitments accepted by Poland at the Singapore WTO Ministerial Meeting and its obligations as a member of the ILO, the government of Poland should therefore report to the WTO and the ILO on its actions to implement fully core labour standards.
8. The WTO should draw to the attention of the authorities of Poland the commitments they undertook to observe core labour standards at the Singapore and Geneva WTO Ministerial Conferences. The WTO should request the ILO to intensify its work with the government of Poland in these areas and provide a report to the WTO General Council on the occasion of the next trade policy review.
References
Clean Clothes Campaign, Made in Eastern Europe, 1998.
Education International (EI), Barometer on Human and Trade Union Rights in the Education Sector, 1998.
ICFTU, Annual Survey of Violations of Trade Union Rights, editions from 1998 to 2000 (forthcoming).
ICFTU Women's Network, Bulletin (Baltic Region), 1999.
ILO, Report of the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations, editions from 1995 to 2000.
ILO, Report of the Committee on Freedom of Association, 1999.
Mroczkowski, Tomasz, “Women as employees and entrepreneurs in the Polish transformation”, Industrial Relations Journal, 1997.
Reuters, various reports.
US Department of State, Report on Human Rights Practices for 1999, 2000.