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Starting on March 21, ZSP organized a few actions related to housing issues in the Praga area of Warsaw. This area is undergoing intense gentrification and people are being forced out of their homes in various ways.
One of the most dangerous methods of the gentrifiers is arson. At the end of 2011, after a series of arson attacks, we formed neighbourhood patrols for community self-defense. These patrols were successful and the arsons stopped for well over a year. After a series of new fires, the patrols were reactivated.
Also we protested against the destruction of the main street in the neighbourhood, where our offices are also located. A metro line is being built and the consortium responsible has not taken any measures to secure the old buildings. As a result, some of them are falling and people are in danger of losing their homes and being evacuated. It is clear that the city and consortium have agreed to take this route, because the gentrifiers want the old tenants out of the neighbourhood anyway. Despite the freezing cold, local residents came out with harsh words of criticism.
Actions in the neighbourhood continue, calling for local assemblies and direct control over public housing.
At the beginning of the year, ZSP Education workers started work on developing a long-term campaign against the use of trash contracts in education. The first thing that we started on was informing about the use of „authors' contracts” instead of employment relations or even typical civil contracts. With these contracts, teachers were being paid for writing courses, instead of teaching them. So in fact, the contracts do not guarantee any wage based on time spent working and creates a big possibility of being cheated. The contracts also imply no working relationship and removes the responsibility of the school to make social security payments. We saw that this type of contract was being used to cheat workers and we targetted some foreign language schools that we knew were using them to begin with. A few weeks later, we were informed that the Social Security Office would do something about this problem. Critical of how the state acts, even when it is supposedly in our interest, we released the following statement.
ZSP Education and IT Workers on Control Related to Author's Contracts in Warsaw Language Schools
Recently ZSP Education Workers pointed out how some educational institutions were using „authors' contracts” for teachers and what negative consequences this could have for them. In particular, we noted their use in a number of foreign language schools in Warsaw, where people were being cheated, especially foreigners. The Social Security office has responded by announcing that it would inspect the schools and see if these teachers are being denied their correct status. This is being done by this office because on „authors' contracts”, the schools do not make social security payments.
Although we welcome measures to stop the use of these abusive contracts, we remain critical as to how the state acts in terms of workers' rights. At the same time that the Social Security Office is moving against these schools, which are predominantly small businesses, tens of thousands of workers are also losing all or part of their social security payments in other ways, or being forced to bear the burden themselves. We cannot forget that workers who are supposed to make their own payments while forced to be fake „entrepeneurs” tend to pay the lowest contribution possible and often pay in much less to their pension that their real employers would have to. The Social Security system is losing tons of money through this and workers are losing parts of their pensions. ZSP points out the abusive use of this scheme plus the use of „authors' contracts” in the IT industry. This abuse is even used in huge multinational corporations which the state refuses to control.
Comrades from the CNT-AIT in Spain who unionized at Telepizza in Seville were fired and since the beginning of the year, pickets have been organized there, demanding the reinstatement of the workers and improved working conditions. Solidarity pickets are also taking place in other cities in Spain. Here in Poland, we decided to show our solidarity to the comrades as well.
At the end of January, we started with publishing information, posters and leaflets about both the situation in Spain and the working conditions in Telepizza in this country. A few of our comrades have worked in this firm and also we have received denouncements from other workers. On February 3, we made some solidarity pickets. In Warsaw, two former Telepizza workers attended pickets. Leaflets were given out in front of the restaurants as well as inside, to customers and workers.
We certainly will go back and we will hope for more contact with the local workers.
Attached is an English version of a leaflet.
On February 2, members of the ZSP, Tenants' Defense Committee and residents of Targowa St. in Warsaw protested against the lack of safety measures taken while building the metro on that street. ZSP's office is at Targowa 22 and some of its members also live on that street in a building sinking into the ground due to lack of safety measures taken during construction. The city and the companies building the metro try to avoid responsibility. In the meanwhile, serious damage has appeared in several landmark buildings and the situation is getting dangerous for residents.
The buildings near the metro construction line are among the strongest on Targowa St; many of them survived the war. But what the nazis did not manage to destroy, capitalist greed is doing. They are under threat and people can lose their homes. The buildings further down the street, including the ZSP office, are in worse condition so they could have even worse problems when works start there.
The people demand that the work planned using big drills be postponed until the safety of the residents are ensured.
The Education Workers' Union of ZSP has produced an English version of its bulletin which can be downloaded here: http://www.zsp.net.pl/education-workers-bulletin-no-1-english-version
ZSP has been receiving information about abuses made by Stuwadoorsbedrijf van Rooij B.V. According to the Court Registry, the Polish branch of the firm in Gliwice is being liquidated, but it is still working, recruiting people to go to work in Holland (using a portal with another name, Want 2 Work.nl).
Besides the traditional problems of temporary work agencies, like not paying all benefits or making people work unpaid overtime, the intermediary is trying to get workers to sign documents that are not in their favour.
For example, one woman there worked for 5 months. She was supposed to have a 6-month contract. The agency then gave her a letter to sign which claimed that she quit the job, which would mean she'd have no right to unemployment benefits in Holland.
On December 17, the first hearing in a lawsuit against Roche Polska took place. (An earlier hearing was postponed.) The IT worker is suing to have his employment status recognized, be reinstated at work and to get compensation for lost benefits. The employer had been using third parties and outside firms to pay the workers, even when the outside firm had nothing to do with the work done. Such firms served only to be an intermediary and to pay the workers. The company then did not give them benefits nor did they give them any of the guarantees workers have under the Labour Code.
At the beginning of the hearing, the lawyer for Roche proposed to settle and pay the worker damages of 40,000 zloties (around 10,000 euros) if he would waive any further claims. He did not agree to this and continued with the case.
Two witnesses were heard: one is a current employee of the firm, another a former employee. Both IT workers were employed to work at Roche through the outside firm. The first witness testified that he had his work interview at Roche. There he learned about the work conditions, pay, etc. and was told he would be hired. But then Roche told him he had to work for another guy and sent him to him. Then he never even had any contract with this outside firm. He worked the whole time at Roche. Another witness, who worked through the same firm, but then had a contract directly said that he saw no difference between his work at the company and as a contractor, except that the direct employees were invited to company parties and received benefits. Both worked in the same place set by Roche and carried out the tasks set by their supervisors at work. The firm which supposedly was there to give them work never supervised or even was aware of the work of „its” workers and there was no contact with that company and the workers at the Roche office. Both of the workers had seen the owner of that company only once.
Teachers went on strike in Slovakia last week, demanding a 10 percent pay raise. Such a demand is more than justified. We carry out important work but the remuneration is hardly enough to allow for a comfortable life. The teachers said that they would strike til the end, until they got this raise.
We praise this attitude, to fight to improved work conditions and to use such action to force change. However the main union quickly showed that it was afraid and felt in a weak position. Talk about 5% raise and they were ready to call an end to the strike.
On Nov. 23, ZSP held a picket in Warsaw at the Agency for the Development of Industry about the death of a 26 year old worker at HI Logistics, part of LG Electronics at the factory in the Special Economic Zone in Biskupice Podgorne, near Wroclaw. The comrades pointed out that the worker was crushed while operating a forklift, which he had no license or training to use and that such work was not covered in his work contract. He was working at the factory through a temporary work agency.
ZSP demanded that the Agency, which oversees the zone, take responsibility for what is going on there.
People can send protest mails to the temporary agency, Max Power, or to LG, which owns HI Logistics.
Max Power Sp. z o.o. ul. LG 1, Biskupice Podgórne 55-040
Protests to: praca@max-power.com.pl
Fax. 48 71 790 00 11
ul LG Electronics 1-2 Biskupice Podgorne, 55-040
fax: 48- 71 770 50 09
FAX: 48-71-792-9405
wroclaw@lge.com and
HR Department
lge.wroclaw@lge.com.
We are writing to express our outrage about the poor safety standards and use of improperly trained staff at the Hi Logistics Factory. We demand that all workers undergo the appropriate training for the equipment they are handling and are ensured proper safety conditions. Stop cutting costs on workers or we will stop buying your products!
On November 14, members of ZSP took part in various actions in solidarity with November 14 strikes, calling for radicalization of the workers' movement in Poland.
In the morning we visited the symbolic protests of mainstream unions. Despite the fact that 3 of the 4 largest unions in Poland (representing 1.6 million workers) protested, there was almost no rank and file participation, with the largest protest being only 250-300 people, mainly professional activists. The unions simply handed in a protest to the Ministry in Labour and the head of OPZZ told that crowd that striking would be illegal. Of course we have another opinion of what needs to be done and call on workers to fight.
As fighting words fall on deaf ears when it comes to union bureaucrats, leaflet actions were also made separately. In Warsaw there was an informational action related to the educational strike as well.
In the evening, a group of people from ZSP plus a few comrades from the Anarchist Federation and other sympathizers gathered in front of the Presidential Palace for a rally. People spoke about the need to struggle, especially in these times. The lack of militant workers' protests in Poland was almost lamented and one comrade noted that this lack of militancy was also due to over 20 years of shock therapy imposed on the people. Another comrade told about how there were a large number of finanical-related suicides in Poland.
