Social Dialogue

Submission of demands

Trade unions must submit their demands to the employer and establish a deadline for their implementation, which must be no less than three days. If the employer fails to meet all demands within the specified timeframe, an industrial dispute will arise. The trade union may also warn the employer that a strike will be initiated if their demands are not satisfied.

Upon the emergence of a dispute, the employer is required to report it to the appropriate district labour inspector.

Negotiations

The employer is obligated to promptly engage in negotiations in order to resolve the dispute and reach an agreement as soon as possible. The composition, number of participants, the potential involvement of advisers or experts, as well as the duration and location of the negotiations are determined by the parties involved in the industrial dispute.

If the parties arrive at a satisfactory compromise during the negotiations, they sign an agreement. If the direct negotiations do not result in an agreement and the trade union maintains its demands, a divergence report is prepared, outlining the positions of the parties. A divergence report does not have to be a joint document between the parties. The creation of a divergence report serves as the formal basis for proceeding to the next mandatory stage – mediation.

Mediation

If no agreement is reached during the negotiation stage, the parties, under the Act on solving collective labour disputes, are required to make another attempt to resolve the dispute amicably – this time involving an impartial person, a mediator.

The parties to the dispute can jointly entrust the role of mediator to any individual who enjoys public trust and guarantees neutrality. They can also jointly select the mediator from the List of Mediators maintained by the minister responsible for labour in consultation with representative trade union and employers’ organisations.

If the parties to an industrial dispute do not agree on a mediator within 5 days, the minister responsible for labour will appoint a mediator from the List, upon request from one of the parties.

You will find a template for the request to appoint a mediator below in the section: List of mediators and templates of applications.

When submitting your request, remember to attach a copy of the negotiation divergence report (containing the positions of the parties) as a document confirming the end of the negotiation phase.

The minister will inform the dispute parties of the mediator’s appointment. The mediator will agree on the date and terms of the mediation proceedings directly with the parties to the dispute. The mediator’s primary task is to help the parties reach an agreement. The mediator provides support, but their suggestions are not binding on the parties.

The mediation process concludes with the parties signing an agreement or, if no agreement is reached, with the creation of a divergence report outlining the positions of the parties. These activities are carried out with the assistance of a mediator. A so-called partial agreement addressing a portion of the trade union’s demands is also possible. The scope of the agreement is determined by the parties involved in the industrial dispute. Failure to reach an agreement in mediation proceedings entitles the parties to take strike action or, if the right to strike is not exercised, to proceed with the social arbitration college.

Arbitration, or conciliation, is voluntary and serves as an alternative to a strike. A trade union involved in an industrial dispute may choose not to exercise the right to strike and instead attempt to resolve the dispute through social arbitration.

If the dispute concerns:

• a single workplace, it is heard by the social arbitration college of the regional court,
• more than one workplace (multi-company dispute), it is heard by the social arbitration college of the Supreme Court.

The application for arbitration should include:

• identification of the parties,
• the subject of the dispute,
• persons designated by the parties as members of the college.

The application must be accompanied by the divergence reports from the negotiations and mediation, as well as documents relevant to the settlement of the dispute.

Course of action:

The detailed procedure before the social arbitration colleges is outlined in the Regulation of the Council of Ministers of 16 August 1991 on the procedure before the social arbitration colleges

A strike involves the collective refusal of workers to perform their duties to resolve a dispute concerning the rights and interests in question.

The right to strike is an individual worker’s right that can only be exercised collectively.

A proper strike can be organised if, during mediation, the parties fail to reach an agreement and a divergence report is written indicating their positions.

The law unambiguously states that a strike is a last resort measure, meaning it cannot be declared without first exhausting the possibilities for an amicable resolution of the dispute – including the submission of demands, negotiations, and mediation.

Exception: A strike may be organised without complying with the above rules if the employer’s unlawful actions have prevented negotiations or mediation, or if the employer has terminated the employment relationship with a union activist engaged in an industrial dispute.

The right to organise a strike action and other forms of protest lies exclusively with the company trade union organisation, which is authorised to initiate and conduct an industrial dispute.

Responsibilities of the strike organiser

The provisions of the Act impose various obligations on strike organisers:

• Before initiating a strike, the trade union must consider the proportionality of their demands in relation to the potential losses that may result from the strike.
• The strike must be announced at least 5 days in advance.
• The strike organiser is obligated to collaborate with the workplace manager to ensure the protection of the workplace’s property and the continuous operation of equipment and installations; this cooperation is necessary to prevent any threats to human life or health due to the immobilisation of equipment and to restore normal workplace operations.

Restrictions on the right to strike

Important: Certain professional groups do not have the right to strike due to state security, the need to ensure continuity in the functioning of the state, and the protection of citizens.

For example, stopping work as a result of strike action is not allowed in regards to workplaces, equipment, and installations where work cessation endangers human life, health, or national security. Uniformed units and services responsible for the protection and smooth operation of the state also cannot organise a strike (for further information, see Article 19(2) of the Act). The right to strike does not apply to employees working in state authorities, state and local government administration, courts, and the public prosecutor’s office.
It is worth noting that during a strike organised in accordance with the provisions of the Act, employees retain the right to social security benefits and rights under the employment relationship, except for the right to remuneration.

Warning strike

A warning strike can be organised once for a maximum of 2 hours before the mediation proceedings end if it appears that the mediation process will not resolve the dispute.

Workers who do not have the right to strike may resort to alternative forms of protest that do not endanger human life or health and do not interrupt work. In support of these workers’ rights and interests, a trade union operating in another workplace may organise a so-called solidarity strike for no more than half of a working day.

Strike referendum

For a strike to be legal, besides fulfilling the conditions mentioned earlier, the consent of the workplace’s workforce is necessary. To obtain this consent, the union conducts a vote known as a strike referendum. A strike can be initiated if at least 50% of the workers in the workplace participate in the referendum, with a simple majority voting in favour. In the case of a multi-company strike, consent from a majority of voting workers in each individual workplace involved is required, provided at least 50% of the workers in each workplace participate in the vote. The form of voting is determined by the union leading the industrial dispute.

The List of Mediators, as outlined in the Act on solving collective labour disputes, is maintained by the minister responsible for labour, in agreement with trade union organisations and employers’ organisations, which are representative as per the Act of 24 July 2015 on the Social Dialogue Council and other institutions of social dialogue.

The remuneration for mediators conducting mediation proceedings is regulated by the Regulation of the Minister of Economy and Labour of 8 December 2004.

MEDIATOR STANDARDS in industrial disputes:

1. The mediator follows applicable legislation, mainly the Act on solving collective labour disputes.
2. The mediator organises and manages mediation.
3. The mediator informs parties about the mediation’s nature and process.
4. The mediator clarifies their role in mediation.
5. The mediator discloses their remuneration method they intend to use.
6. The mediator remains neutral in the dispute.
7. The mediator maintains impartiality and independence.
8. The mediator ensures confidentiality of the mediation.
9. The mediator is dedicated to high professional qualifications.

When a conflict between employees and employers cannot be addressed under the Act on solving collective labour disputes for formal and legal reasons, and resolving it is crucial for maintaining social peace, voivodship social dialogue councils (WRDS) can act as social peace moderators. They are authorized, among other things, to handle conflict cases. The tasks of the WRDS are regulated by the Act of 24 July 2015 on the Social Dialogue Council and other institutions of social dialogue (link to Act, National Legislation).

Once the case has been submitted by the parties entitled to do so, the WRDS expresses an opinion or adopts a resolution on the necessity of appointing a person with a goodwill mission, who will be selected from the List of Mediators under the minister responsible for labour. A person with a goodwill mission assists the parties in resolving the conflict and reaching an agreement. However, their actions are not considered part of a mediation procedure conducted under the Act on solving collective labour disputes.

In exceptional cases, if the social interest so requires, the chairperson of the voivodship social dialogue council may independently decide – without convening a WRDS meeting – to appoint a person with a goodwill mission and request that the minister responsible for labour appoint a mediator to carry out this mission.