Reality
In 2019, the International Labour Organisation celebrated its centenary. These hundred years represent a considerable change in the understanding and Organisation of labour relations and a definite improvement in working conditions around the world. Can we, therefore, rest on our laurels? Has the idea of decent work been fully implemented? Definitely not. A glance at the situation of Polish workers shows how much there is still work to be done.
In the annual report of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), the Global Right Index Poland is once again classified as one of the countries where "regular violations of labour law" take place. The report divides all the countries surveyed into five groups, among which the first group is the one with the best situation (occasional violation of labour law), and the fifth group are the countries where the situation of working people is worst (no guarantee of labour rights). Poland is in group 3, i.e. halfway between a hopeless and desirable condition. It is worth noting that analysts see the sources of the poor situation of Polish workers more often than not in labour law itself, but problems with its enforcement. This is due to, among other things, the weakness of the supervisory institutions, the sluggishness of labour courts, low unionisation, high social consent to failure to comply with labour law and the instability of employment that favours this consent, and finally, low awareness among employees of their cases and how to enforce them.
Another problem is that the Labour Code covers only part of those who provide work in Poland. According to data from the Central Statistical Office, in 2018, the number of people employed exclusively under civil law contracts (contracts for work and contracts of mandate) increased by 8.3% compared with the previous year and amounted to 1.3 million people. In 2018, we had precisely the same number of self-employed people, whose number also increased by over 8%. The total number of people not covered by the provisions of the Labour Code was as many as 2.6 million, which is a record figure since 2012. There is little or no protection for these people in terms of these decent work conditions.
Other problems faced by designers of the Polish labour market (that is, all of us!) are the still low level of employment (at the end of 2018, 68% of people of working age were employed), the lack of equality in the situation of women and men in the labour market (manifested, among other things, by the fact that the number of people who are not covered by the provisions of the Labour Code has reached 2.6 million, a record figure since 2012. the lower employment rate of women, lower wages, less access to management positions), still relatively low wages (from the point of view of the EU average), overwork (we are one of the most overworked nations in Europe), the already mentioned low unionisation or a feudal model of employee-supervisor relations which is more difficult to measure, but perhaps more strongly felt. These aspects translate into a high level of work-related stress, a relatively low sense of security and purpose at work, increased intensity of violent phenomena, and a growing number of health problems (also of a mental nature) resulting from difficult working conditions. The coronavirus pandemic, during which this document is being drafted, has precisely exposed the described illnesses and still not the best situation of a Polish worker. Within a few weeks, we saw more clearly how many people in Poland do not have stable employment and the resulting safeguards, and how weak the position of employees and workers is when confronted with social and economic crises.
