Closing the economy will result in a huge crisis and the elimination of a huge number of jobs. We have to counteract this by approaching sanitary issues with particular responsibility, appeal the entrepreneurs associated in the Entrepreneurship Council in their today’s statement. - Let’s save jobs together! – they call.

The statement was signed by: Andrzej Arendarski (Polish Chamber of Commerce), Marek Kowalski (Federation of Polish Entrepreneurs), Jolanta Jaworska (Association of Business Service Leaders), Maciej Witucki (Polish Confederation Lewiatan), Wojciech Kostrzewa (Polish Business Council), Andrzej Malinowski (Employers of Poland), Marek Goliszewski (Business Centre Club), Krzysztof Pietraszkiewicz (Polish Bank Association), Jan Gogolewski (Polish Craft Association).

The appeal was read out loud during today’s joint conference with Deputy Prime Minister Gowin by Marek Kowalski, Head of the Federation of Polish Entrepreneurs, which currently holds the rotating chairmanship of the Entrepreneurship Council. Then its content was passed to the head of the ministry of economic development, labour and technology.

I would like to thank the Entrepreneurship Council and all Polish entrepreneurs for the appeal which I treat as an expression of responsibility for Polish companies, Polish jobs, as well as our social and economic security. We believe that this appeal will contribute to avoiding the worst scenario, which means a lockdown – said Deputy Prime Minister Gowin.

Let us do everything we can to save the economy – emphasised the head of the ministry of economic development, labour and technology. He then pointed out:

We are also thinking about what will happen after the pandemic. The ministry is already developing a strategy for the reconstruction and development of the Polish economy.

Deputy Prime Minister Gowin also assured Polish entrepreneurs of his will to consult them on all key decisions. He emphasised that – for over a month, since he was been appointed the minister of economic development – he had been carrying out systematic consultations with individual sectors of the Polish economy. This morning, he had a conversation with representatives of the furniture industry, and last week, among others, with the aviation, catering, event, hotel and fitness sectors.

We appreciate the very important platform for consultation, which is the Social Dialogue Council, within which both employers and trade unions are represented. Recently, the government side took the annual chairmanship of the Council – he declared.

Deputy Prime Minister Gowin was thanked by the head of the Federation of Polish Entrepreneurs Marek Kowalski:

Thank you, mister prime minister, for the fact that you are standing here, shoulder to shoulder with entrepreneurs, and that you are our representative in the government.

Statement by the Entrepreneurship Council

Due to the dramatic epidemic situation in Poland and the growing number of deaths due to COVID-19, entrepreneurs associated in the Entrepreneurship Council are calling for strict compliance with sanitary requirements in the workplace, which will protect us from the closure of the economy. Closing the economy will result in a huge crisis and the elimination of a big number of jobs. We must counteract this by approaching sanitary issues with particular responsibility – can be read in the statement of the Entrepreneurship Council.

Therefore, we call on all entrepreneurs to pay special attention to the proper equipping of employees with protective and disinfecting agents as part of the general social discipline, and to ensure that employees comply with sanitary restrictions at the workplace – its signatories noted.

On the other hand, the employees were recommended to strictly follow the DDM principle – Distance, Disinfection, Mask – at work and in public spaces.

According to analyses of European countries, the application of the DDM principle has great impact on limiting the spread of the virus – they argue.

Only national responsibility and self-discipline will make it possible to avoid a deep lockdown, which could result in the complete collapse of the economy, bankruptcies of companies, mass layoffs and a sharp rise of unemployment rate. European countries that have already introduced a lockdown have not closed their countries’ economies. In Poland, we also have to fight for this – noted the entrepreneurs associated in the Entrepreneurship Council.

 

According to the representatives of entrepreneurs, “everything indicates that COVID-19 will remain with us for many months to come”.

“If we are to cope with that, the fight against the pandemic must be strategic: we should strive to detect outbreaks, effectively isolate the infected, maintain a strict sanitary regime, increase the efficiency of the health service and educate the public” - says the Enterprise Council in its statement.

 

Entrepreneurs knew from the very beginning how to act: they took responsibility for the health of their employees, reorganized work in companies, introduced large-scale remote work and allocated huge resources to testing and security systems minimising the risk of virus transmission – it indicates.

 

We should remember that closing any company is a tragedy not only for entrepreneurs, but above all for the employees and their families. According to the counter of economic losses caused by COVID-19, the Polish economy is already losing over 660 million Polish zlotys every day. Joint actions of entrepreneurs and the government, as well as dialogue with business and using the experience of entrepreneurs will allow us to survive the difficult time of the pandemic and save jobs! – conclude the authors of the statement.