Dissertation_Paula Aleksandrowicz_12 ... - Jacobs University

or resort solely to reactive measures (as will become clear in the next sections of this work).
Firms located in economically more developed regions and with foreign investment are
more innovative with regard to personnel policy, and more prone to pursue long-term
orientated HRM strategies. The main focus of personnel policy with regard to older workers
are protective measures and social benefits and early retirement.
4.3.3. Recruitment Practice
The interviews with Polish firm representatives generated more information on the
recruitment policy than was the case in my German firm case studies. At the time of the
interview with the personnel managers (2005) or the shop stewards (2006), five firms were
affected by a hiring freeze (Firm PL-4, Firm PL-8, Firm PL-9, Firm PL-10), but even there,
the interviewees elaborated on the firm´s recruitment policy. Moreover, interesting
comparisons with pre-transition situation were possible.
Just as was the case with the studied German firms, older workers in Poland have small
chances of finding a new job. The anti-discrimination legislation has sharpened the
awareness for ageing issues and some interviewees reported a dropping of age bars in job
ads, either in their own firms or in competing firms. However, theory (equal opportunity)
and practice (the results of hiring) are wide apart, as was expressed most explicitly by
personnel managers in two vehicle manufacturing firms:
“[O]fficially, I can say that those who are 60 and who are 25 have equal rights. In practice, there is
more hiring of younger persons, meaning directly after university education or vocational schools,
as far as blue-collar positions are concerned.” (Firm PL-15_HRM)
“Of course, age is no criterion, it does not appear anywhere, but the result is, as it seems… (…) The
result of hiring somehow seems to confirm that mainly young workers are recruited.” (Firm PL-
14_HRM)
The transition to market economy has lowered the recruitment chances of older workers
in two respects. Firstly, causes were the tight external labour market, and internal
´squeezing´ and hiring freezes. Secondly, the demands for the qualification status of
applicants and performance requirements have risen sharply. Whereas before, even workers
with only primary school education were hired 53 , nowadays a completed university
53 My interviewees reported that during full employment and labour hoarding, there was a real “hunt for
workers”, incentives to join a firm, and even forced recruitment. The basic selection mechanisms were
nepotism and governmental orders (e.g. hiring of formers prisoners or persons with mental handicaps).
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