Dissertation_Paula Aleksandrowicz_12 ... - Jacobs University

trade unions to shape personnel policy in Polish companies will be described as a starting
point for the empirical analysis in section 4.3.
The industrial relations model in Poland is in a state of flux. Kozek (2003: 36-39) views
industrial relations in Poland as ´pluralistic with neo-corporatist elements´, an example of
which is the co-existence of four umbrella organisations of employers´ federations (ibid: 24)
and of plural unionism at firm and at branch level, while Pocztowski (2003: 429) describes
it as a ´Central European corporatist model´ with high level of state intervention. Most
social dialogue takes place at national level (Mailand/Due 2004: 183), as it is the main arena
where trade unions have enough political clout due to low cooperation of employers at
lower bargaining levels (Kozek 2003: 32). The state is the main player in industrial relations
in CEEC (Schroeder 2004).
Second in importance are establishment-level negotiations. Companies are gaining in
power in the process of privatisation. They are the main sparring partner for trade unions, as
employers´ associations mostly exert lobby functions and are seldom engaged in collective
bargaining. 30 Most often, establishment-level negotiations are initiated by trade unions and
cover pay, working conditions and employee participation in restructuring (Mailand/Due
2004: 188). They cover 20-35 per cent of Polish companies (Ladó/Vaughan-Whitehead
2003, quoted after Mailand/Due 2004: 189), mostly public companies, large state-owned or
privatised companies. Sectoral agreements cover only 6.6 per cent of workers (Kozek 2003:
28).
During communism, works councils as a form of self-government by the workers were
established by law in public enterprises (Siewierski 1993). After transformation, the power
of employees´ representations was curtailed.
In contrast to Germany, several trade unions at enterprise level can be present. Due to
political heritage (OPZZ – established under martial law and linked to the Communist party
nomenclature; Solidarność – established shortly before by political dissidents), they
occupied (and still do) rival positions, but formed nevertheless a more powerful bloc than
the employers (Socha/Sztanderska 1991: 4, 18). In general, the rivalry between trade unions
moves them towards more radical positions vis-à-vis management in order to secure their
30 Branch agreements are seldom conducted, owing to low membership in employers´ associations and the lack
of employers´ organisations at sectoral level (Mailand/Due 2004: 187; Kulpińska 2005: 6). Only 20% of
employers are organised (Gilejko 2005: 80). Also the Polish paradigm of ´shop-level trade unions´ hinders
sectoral cooperation (Kozek 2003: 17; Kulpińska 2007: 2).
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