Since the mid-1990s, the number of strikes in Poland has fallen to a low level, with trade unions tending to avoid using the 'strike weapon' both in the private sector, where unions are either very weak or absent, and (to a lesser extent) in the public sector, in the light of prevailing economic and labour market conditions. This feature examines the legal regulation of strikes, strike trends and dynamics since 1990.
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Since the mid-1990s, the number of strikes in Poland has fallen to a low level, with trade unions tending to avoid using the 'strike weapon' both in the private sector, where unions are either very weak or absent, and (to a lesser extent) in the public sector, in the light of prevailing economic and labour market conditions. This feature examines the legal regulation of strikes, strike trends and dynamics since 1990.
After the Second World War, Polish industrial relations were marked by socialistic state control, together with central planning, regulation of consumer goods and 'nationalisation' of trade unions. However, the system did not provide effective in preventing recurrent social conflicts. Since the period of reform began in 1989, the right to strike has been regulated by law, and varying numbers of strikes have occurred. Here we examine the legal regulation of strikes and strike trends and dynamics since 1990.
Legal regulation of strikes
Strikes are regulated by the Act of May 1991 on the settlement of labour disputes. Where a labour dispute arises, employers are obliged to launch immediate negotiations with their employees. The employees may call a strike if these negotiations are ineffective or are not launched during the 14 days after the date of the outbreak of the dispute.
The 1991 Act limits the scope of the right to strike in that it forbids work stoppages if they are to the detriment of people's life and health, or put the state's security at stake. Moreover, it is not permitted to organise a strike in: the Office of State Protection; the national police and military services; the prison service; the National Border Guard Headquarters; and the National Fire Service Headquarters. Similarly, officials employed in the organs of state authority or state and governmental administration, as well as the employees of courts and public prosecutors' offices, are not entitled to call a strike. In order to protect the rights and plead the cause of those workers who are not entitled to call a strike, a trade union within another organisation may hold a secondary strike. However, it should be stressed that it is the only situation where it is permitted to call a secondary strike.
By law, participation in a strike is a voluntary act. A 'company strike' can be called by a trade union only if a majority of employees voting on the industrial action give their assent, and provided that at least 50% of all relevant employees have voted. An 'industry branch strike' can be called by a trade union recognised as eligible by the relevant legislation, provided that the majority of employees voting in enterprises covered by the proposed strike give their assent and that at least 50% of employees have voted.
Although the legislation regulating strikes is quite precise, a considerable number of strikes have been held without following the procedures laid down by law.
Poland, similar to many other European countries, does not provide for a right of lock-out for employers.
Dynamics of strikes over 1990-2001
The history of strikes in Poland since the beginning of the 1990s can be divided into three stages.
over 1990-1, the number of strikes was relatively stable. In 1990, strike activity occurred mainly in the transport and mineral coal-mining sectors, whereas in 1991 it was the industry that dominated the strike statistics. Moreover, workers in sectors such as education and agriculture for the first time took advantage of the ability to strike;
1992-3 saw a considerable upsurge in strike activity, with the number of strikes growing to some thousands a year. A great number of protest strikes occurred in education, as the employees in this sector demanded greater funding for education as well as higher pay for teachers and other education workers; and
the period from 1994 to today has witnessed a gradual decrease in the number of strikes. However, the data on strikes over this period are not compatible with those from previous years, as Polish Official Statistics (Główny Urząd Statystyczny, GUS) has applied new methods for counting the number of strikes. Until the end of 1994, GUS counted 'token strikes' in the total, while protest actions in the form of national or regional token strikes were regarded as acts of protest in each company which participated in an 'industry branch strike'. Since 1995, 'industry branch strikes' have been counted as single acts of protest and not as the total of companies that participated in these strikes. Since 1995 (excluding 1999), the number of strikes has not exceeded 50 per year. Special consideration should be given to 1999, when there was a rapid growth in the number of strikes in education.
The table below provides statistics on strike levels in Poland from 1990 to 2001.
| Year | No. of strikes | No. of strikers | Strikers as % of workforce in companies where strikes took place | No. of working days lost due to participation in strikes |
| 1990 | 250 | 115,700 | 29.7 | 159,000 |
| 1991 | 305 | 221,500 | 41.4 | 517,600 |
| 1992 | 6,362 | 730,000 | 43.4 | 2,360,400 |
| 1993 | 7,443 | 383,200 | 55.2 | 580,400 |
| 1994 | 482 | 211,400 | 29.5 | 561,700 |
| 1995 | 42 | 18,100 | 37.6 | 56,300 |
| 1996 | 21 | 44,300 | 63.8 | 75,400 |
| 1997 | 35 | 14,200 | 42.4 | 27,500 |
| 1998 | 37 | 16,900 | 25.2 | 43,500 |
| 1999 | 920 | 27,100 | 43.9 | 106,900 |
| 2000 | 44 | 7,900 | 27.5 | 74,300 |
| 2001 | 11 | 1,400 | 32.8 | 33,400 |
Sources: compiled by author on basis of GUS figures for 1991-2001.
Causes and character of industrial conflicts
The first stage of Poland's period of socio-economic transformation was conducive to the emergence of a conflictual model of industrial relations. The economic, legal and political changes in companies' operating conditions, as well as transformations in ownership, generated various conflicts. New areas of conflict emerged, such as the fight for dominance between trade unions and employees on one side and employers/owners or managers on the other. The employers, whose freedom of decision-making had been considerably limited by trade unions, considered trade unionists as the representatives of a useless institution, whereas the unions showed a tendency to regard the employers merely as directors who could be dismissed. Consequently, during the first stage of fundamental changes in the economy, companies witnessed an incessant fight for dominance and the recurrent voicing of employees' needs and demands. Conflicts were most frequently generated by situations where employees' claims combined with the uncompromising demands of the unions. Simultaneously, the employers aimed to oust trade unions or at least to limit their role within companies.
Since 1994, the dynamics of strikes have weakened, mainly due to processes that have changed to a great extent the character of industrial relations, and industrial conflicts in particular. These processes are:
a weakening of the role of trade unions, which is particularly visible in the private sector, where trade unions are either very weak or absent; and
changing trade union views in the public sector. Although the public sector is a trade union sronghold, even here, due to the prevailing economic and labour market conditions, unions now tend to cooperate with management. For the sake of the company, they have changed their attitude towards strikes, which now tend to be regarded as an ineffective weapon detrimental to both the employees and the company as a whole.
Commentary
The number of strikes in Poland has been falling annually. Trade unions avoid the 'strike weapon' and prefer negotiations with employers, even if these negotiations are prolonged and fail to bring the expected results. However, these general conclusions should be supplemented with more detailed explanations, taking into account sectoral factors.
In the public sector, where trade unions are relatively strong, strikes are called more often than in the private sector. Although this form of protest is costly, it is still highly popular, especially in the public services sector. However, the longer a strike lasts, the more harmful it becomes from the point of view of the average citizen. It should also be acknowledged that these public sector protests are not only economic in nature, but also political. The political aspect of strikes has two dimensions: first, the claims of the strikers often refer to general economic policy; and second, the participation of trade unions in strikes demonstrates their political orientation.
By contrast, in the private sector there are hardly any strikes at all, which is due not to this sector's social stability, but rather to a number of other factors. First, the majority of companies in the private sector either have no trade unions or face weak unions which prefer to adopt a survival and cooperation strategy rather than open conflict. Moreover, the terms and conditions of employment are more often based on individual employment contracts than on collective agreements, which strengthens the employers' position and weakens the employees' tendency to voice their claims.
In addition, a strike in the private sector usually has only a local dimension. It does not hamper the everyday life of wider parts of society, nor does it provide any 'material' for the politicians to feed on. For this reason, other forms of protest and voicing demands, such as demonstrations and blockades, have become more popular. They are both 'showy' and effective (being widely covered in the media) and can 'successfully' impede the functioning of society as a whole. Finally, and most importantly, they are not detrimental to the functioning of the workers' employing company. (Rafał Towalski, Warsaw School of Economics [Szkoła Główna Handlowa, SGH] and Institute of Public Affairs [Instytut Spraw Publicznych, ISP])
Eurofound recommends citing this publication in the following way.
Eurofound (2002), Strikes over 1990-2001 examined, article.
