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 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.

Project details

Project info
Period
2014-2021
Approval date
Grant financing
214000.00€
Final project cost
217017.00€