Social Dialogue Council

Poland

RDS

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President

Andrzej Radzikowski

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Secretary-General

Iwona Zakrzewska

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Contact

Limanowskiego 23

02-943

Warsaw

Tel:

(+48)22/380-51-12

Fax:

(+48)22/380-51-13

Email:

rds [at] cpsdialog.gov.pl

Website: www.rds.gov.pl

Introduction

The Social Dialogue Council (RDS) has been operating since 2015, when it replaced the Tripartite Commission for Socio-Economic Affairs, which had been operating since 1994. The legal basis for the functioning of the Social Dialogue Council is the Act of 24 July 2015 on the Social Dialogue Council and other social dialogue institutions (Journal of Laws of 2018, item 2232, as amended). The Social Dialogue Council is a place where dialogue and cooperation between government partners, employees and employers take place. On 22 October 2015, the President of the Republic of Poland appointed the first 59 members of the Council and his representative member in the Council, the elected President of the National Bank of Poland, and the President of the Central Statistical Office. Meetings of the Council and its Presidium are held as needed, but at least once every two months. The Council makes decisions by way of resolution at plenary sessions if the meeting is attended by representatives of more than half of the employees' organisations, representatives of more than half of the employers' organisations and at least one representative of the Council of Ministers.

Mission

The Council conducts a dialogue to ensure conditions for socio-economic development and to increase the competitiveness of the Polish economy and social cohesion.
The Council works to implement the principle of participation and social solidarity in the field of employment relations.
The Council works to improve the quality of formulation and implementation of socio-economic policies and strategies, as well as to build social agreement around them by conducting transparent, substantive and regular dialogue between employees' and employers' organisations and the government.
The Council supports social dialogue at the local level.

Competence

The Social Dialogue Council has a right to:

prepare draft legal acts for obligatory consideration by the Council of Ministers (the so-called quasi legislative initiative);
apply to the competent minister to issue or amend a legal act;
request that the Council of Ministers hold a public hearing on a draft normative act;
address queries to relevant ministers, who must respond to them within 30 days;
apply to the Supreme Court for a resolution of a legal issue if discrepancies in the interpretation of law have been revealed in the jurisprudence of the Supreme Court or common courts.

The tasks of the Social Dialogue Council include:

giving opinions on draft assumptions for bills and draft legal acts;
giving opinions on the Multiannual Financial Plan of the State, strategy projects, programme projects and other government documents;
giving opinions on the preliminary forecast of macroeconomic values constituting the basis for work on the draft budget act and presenting proposals on the increase in salaries in the national economy in the next year, including in the state budgetary sphere, as well as increasing the minimum salary and pensions from the Social Insurance Fund;
giving opinions on the assumptions of the draft state budget and draft budget act;
presenting positions on matters brought by the Council of Ministers, its members and other state organs;
considering applications addressed to Voivodeship Social Dialogue Councils regarding matters falling within the competence of the Social Dialogue Council.

Membership

The statutory members of the Social Dialogue Council are the representatives of: the government, representative trade union organisations and representative employers' organisations.

Representative workers' organisations included in the Council are: Niezależny Samorządny Związek Zawodowy "Solidarność", Ogólnopolskie Porozumienie Związków Zawodowych and Forum Związków Zawodowych.

Representative employers' organisations included in the Council are: Konfederacja Lewiatan, Pracodawcy Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej, Związek Pracodawców Business Centre Club, Związek Rzemiosła Polskiego and Związek Przedsiębiorców i Pracodawców.

Currently the government side is represented by: Marlena Maląg – Minister of Family, Labour and Social Policy; Tadeusz Kościński – Minister of Finance; Dariusz Piontkowski – Minister of National Education; Jadwiga Emilewicz – Minister of Development; Mariusz Kamiński – Minister of the Interior and Administration; Łukasz Szumowski – Minister of Health; Andrzej Adamczyk – Minister of Infrastructure; Jacek Sasin – Vice President of the Council of Ministers, Minister of State Assets; Tomasz Robaczyński – Undersecretary of State in the Ministry of Finance; Stanisław Szwed – Secretary of State at the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy; Małgorzata Jarosińska-Jedynak – Minister of Funds and Regional Policy; Michał Kurtyka – Minister of Climate.

Organisation

The Social Dialogue Council is the most important institution of social dialogue in Poland. It provides a forum for cooperation and tripartite dialogue for employees, employers and the government. The Council conducts a dialogue to ensure conditions for socio-economic development to increase the competitiveness of the Polish economy and social cohesion.

The Council consists of three workers' organisations, five employers' organisations and the representatives of the government. The works of the Council are managed by the Presidium of the Council, which consists of ten members. Members of the Social Dialogue Council meet in plenary sessions. The Council's Social Dialogue Office provides technical, organisational and office support for the Council.

In the Social Dialogue Council, there are eight problem teams, one interim problem team and one working group. Team members, supported by experts, consult draft legal regulations and discuss the current socio-economic situation in the country. The positions developed by the teams are forwarded to the Council or to the appropriate ministry.

The Council's problem teams work on the following issues:

Labour law
Budget, salaries and social benefits
Economic policy and the labour market
Social security
Development of social dialogue also at European Union level
European funds
Public services
International affairs

Working Methods

The Social Dialogue Council makes decisions by resolutions during a plenary session in the presence of more than half of the organisations of each party, 2/3 of the members representing the party and at least one representative of the government. The Council may also make decisions by postal vote using electronic communication channels. At the beginning of each year, the Council adopts a work plan for the year.

In 2020 it covered the following topics:

1. 1. 1. The labour market policy in Poland, professional qualifications and competences in the context of the changing needs of the economy and the labour market.
    2. The cost of labour in Poland – recommendations for changes.
    3. The climate and energy policy, and environmental protection – European challenges and their impact on the development of the Polish economy.
    4. The review of the Social Dialogue Council act – recommendations for changes.
    5. The review of the social insurance system in Poland and recommendations for changes.
    6. The health care system – recommendations for changes.
Salary in the sphere of public finances – developing a model for shaping salaries.
Implementation of tasks arising from the Social Dialogue Council act and other social dialogue institutions.
Consideration of proposals developed by the Council's problem teams resulting from their work programme.

The Presidium of the Council forwards issues to the appropriate teams. The teams discuss and develop recommendations which are submitted for a plenary meeting.

During plenary sessions the Social Dialogue Council discusses current socio-economic problems, draft laws and plans for socio-management strategies submitted by the government. In addition to the members of the Council, experts also take part in the plenary debates. The recommendations and comments adopted by the Council are forwarded by the President to the relevant Ministers.

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