Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1997, published 86th ILC session (1998)

Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98) - Poland (Ratification: 1957)

The Committee notes the Government's report.

With reference to its previous comments on the effective and dissuasive nature of measures to be taken to ensure adequate protection against acts of anti-union discrimination both at the time of taking up employment and in the course of employment, and against acts of interference by employers in workers' trade union activities, the Committee observes that the Government has indicated that the present fixed-amount fines (section 35 of the Act of 23 May 1991, which established a maximum fine of 50,000 zlotys) still remained in force. The Committee recalls that to ensure the practical application of Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention, national legislation must establish sufficiently dissuasive sanctions against acts of anti-union discrimination and acts of interference by employers in workers' trade union activities. In these circumstances, the Committee requests the Government to take measures in the near future to bring its legislation into conformity with the requirements of the Convention.

Concerning its previous comments on the refusal to approve collective agreements (section 241 of Chapter XI of the Labour Code), the Committee takes due note that the Government has indicated in its report that some refusals took place by reasons of procedural infringements but not for restrictive reasons.

With regard to the Committee's previous comments concerning section 241 of the Labour Code providing that an enterprise collective agreement may be concluded for workers, with the exception of workers employed in the state budgetary sphere, the Government has indicated that in the light of section 241 of the Labour Code, an establishment collective agreement could not be concluded by employees of the budgetary sphere, who were employees of units for which resources available for wages were being determined on the basis of the Act of 23 December 1994 which controls the allocation of resources for wages in the state budgetary sphere. Moreover, the Government states that on the basis of this Act, the resources for wages not only of civil servants but also for other employees' groups (for example, medical practitioners employed in state public health protection institutions) were determined. Employers were, therefore, deprived in these spheres, of the right to determine the amount of financial resources, including means for wages. However, the Government indicates that the Labour Code provisions allow the employees of the state budgetary sphere to conclude supra-establishment collective agreements (section 241). The Committee takes note of the Government's information and requests it to provide detailed information concerning the scope, content and implementation of supra-establishment collective agreements concluded during the period covered by the report.