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Description
The main objective of the project was enhanced implementation of decent work agenda in Poland, with particular emphasis on decent work arrangements for third-country nationals. There were around 1,5 million migrant workers registered in Poland at the time of the projects, with foreign workers mainly working in agriculture and building industry. Foreign workers, due to competition, often accept lower salaries and poor working conditions, where the Polish Labour Inspectorate started to report multiple cases of labour law violations by employers. One reason might be that migrant employees have litte knowledge about their rights. The project aimed to address these issues and to enhance the implementation of fair and decent working conditions with a special focus on migrant workers.
The project addressed the following objectives:
- Enhanced implementation of decent work agenda in Poland, with particular focus on third-country nationals
- Increased number of emmployees and enterprises that have improved decent work arrangements for migrants
- Raised awareness of the benefits of decent work among polish stakeholders
- Enforcement of regulations related to the decent work agenda
- Enhanced bilateral cooperation and better understanding of Norwegian best practices
The main activities included launch event in Warsaw, study visit to Norway, workshops in the regions with relatively high proportion of foreign labour force, reparation of the Manual “Trade unions and migration. Tips and tools to develop a decent work for all”, appointing the OPZZ Decent Work and Migration Policy Adviser, appointing Decent Work Consultant by the MZZPUPU. organization of four implementation seminars, elaboration of the draft of the principles to the Migration Policy Strategy for Poland, and final conference in Warsaw.
Summary of project results
The main objective of the project was enhanced implementation of decent work agenda in Poland, with particular emphasis put on decent work arrangements for third-country nationals. There were around 1,5 million migrant workers registered in Poland at the time of the project, and foreign workers mainly found jobs in agriculture, building industry and service. Foreign workers, due to competition, often accept lower salaries and poor working conditions, where the Polish Labour Inspectorate started to report multiple cases of labour law violations by employers. The project aimed to address these issues and enhance the implementation of fair and decent working conditions with a special focus on migrant workers.
The project started with technical arrangements at a kick-off meeting, gathered information and enhanced the knowledge of Polish representatives during a study visit in Norway. Further, the project gathered information on the needs of Polish employees during the workshops, the project promoter wrote and published the manual “Trade unions and migration. Tips and tools to develop a decent work model for all” and held implementation seminars. All activities were accompanied by information and promotion activities aimed to expand the group of potential recipients.
Project activities:
- Study visit where participants acquired knowledge and skills from their Norwegian colleagues on decent work conditions
- Publishing the Manual “Trade Unions and Migration. Tips and tools to develop a decent work model for all” which caused better access to improved decent work arrangements
- Establishing Decent Work Consultant and Decent Work and Migration Policy Adviser, providing services for migrant workers
- Production of a draft of the principles to the OPZZ Migration Policy Strategy for Poland
- Awareness raising by implementing the Communication Plan.
The project aimed to enhance the implementation of the decent work agenda in Poland, with a particular focus on improving working conditions for third-country nationals. With around 1.5 million migrant workers registered in the country in 2019t, the project sought to address the challenges these workers face, including lower salaries and poor working conditions due to competition and lack of awareness of their rights. The project achieved several significant outcomes. Firstly, it improved fair and decent working conditions for migrant workers in Poland, increasing the number of employees and enterprises with better work arrangements for migrants. Participants in the project gained valuable insights and skills from their Norwegian colleagues during a study visit, which contributed to the overall success of the initiative. One of the key achievements was the publication of the manual "Trade Unions and Migration. Tips and tools to develop a decent work model for all," which provided better access to improved work arrangements. Additionally, the project established the roles of Decent Work Consultant and Decent Work and Migration Policy Adviser to support migrant workers.
The project also produced a draft of the principles for the OPZZ Migration Policy Strategy for Poland and raised awareness of the benefits of decent work among Polish stakeholders through the implementation of a Communication Plan. The workshops organized as part of the project received positive feedback, highlighting the importance of training on decent working conditions.The project received positive feedback from the workshops, where the need for training on topics of decent working conditions has proven to be of great importance. To raise the awareness on decent work has been an important part of the results in this project, whereas raising awareness both for employees but also for employers is crucial for bettering the working conditions.
The beneficiaries of the project included migrant workers, who benefited from improved working conditions and better access to information and support services. Polish stakeholders gained awareness of the benefits of decent work and improved collaboration with Norwegian counterparts. Trade unions and employers also enhanced their understanding and implementation of decent work practices.
Summary of bilateral results
OPZZ reported that the bilateral cooperation with the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions was an excellent opportunity to learn from Norwegians how to effectively provide decent working conditions and support mechanisms for migrants. Learnings included the principles of the Nordic labour model, the operation of trade unions in Norway and the principles of cooperation with state institutions and NGOs working to improve working conditions for migrants, and Service Centers for Foreign Workers (SUA) in Norway. The cooperation was so successful that the parties decided continue cooperation on a new edition of the project – SIDA 2.