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ZSP is very happy to announce some new, important victories in the struggle at PoloMarket, which is in its second year. First, our Rafal has won significant compensation for overtime pay. The supermarket, like many in Poland, used different methods to force more time from workers. In Rafal's case, they included not giving him breaks and failing to take into account limits which should apply to persons with disabilities.

Prior to this, several other workers from our union received overtime payments as well. Rafal's case is important because it also stresses the rights of workers with disabilities and shows that they can fight back. We point out that this category of workers is often abused by bosses who assume that, due to their precarious position, they will not be able to fight back. But as in several other struggles concerning more than 50 our of members, we have been able to show this is not the case.

PoloMarket, in truly despicable fashion, responded to the worker's initial claims by trying to bring a criminal case against Rafal. Later, they brought 2 more cases against 8 people for supposed „crimes” committed during a visit to their headquarters to demand compensation for a worker who was unfairly dismissed – despite the fact that they admitted she was right and paid the compensation. We are also happy to announce that all 3 cases have been won.

Such bullshit attempts to criminalize workers' action is just part of the normal pattern of harrassment which is often unfortunately supported by the courts and government institutions in Poland. Court cases can last for years, causing major inconvenience for workers, in addition to lost work time and other costs. Employers count on this to discourage and intimidate workers. However, ZSP has showed, once again, that we will not be intimidated and we can win.

The struggle against the violation of workers' rights continues, as do our organizing efforts and claims against the market. We expect more and more workers to get what they were cheated out of by the chain.

We thank everybody who showed their support in these cases.