INDUSTRIAL DISPUTE RELATING TO CONSIDERABLE WAGE INCREASE HAS STARTED
In spite of the declared good will, the yesterday's round of wage bargaining turned into a fiasco. The Management, answering the Trade Union's demand to increase wages by 1.000 PLN monthly, proposed an increase by 478 PLN, i.e. not much more than during the September talks (400 PLN). To make the matter worse, this additional sum of 78 PLN was meant to be "saved" on workers moving from Adecco to GM MP!
This type of practices and division of the labour force could not be in any way accepted. As it was preached by the pope John Paul II "solidarity means one with another and never one against another". Trade unionists from Solidarność remember very well these words.
A clear impass in the talks made the trade unions undertake firm measures. All trade unions present in our plant (i.e. NSZZ Solidarność, ZZ Pracowników Opel Polska, WZZ Sierpień’80) decided to appoint a common representation of workers and to start the procedure of industrial dispute. Our aim is to gain a concrete, substantial wage increase for the whole labour force and not decorating our plant with trade union banners or trampling grass during strikes. We insist, however, on a constructive dialogue, aiming at solving the problem and not at fixing further dates of successive meetings. Wewould like to remind that the Management has promised to employees substantial wage increases in 2008 and478 PLN monthly cannot be called a substantial amount of money.
Statutory requirements of the industrial dispute procedure obliged all the trade union organizations to submit on 4 October a notice terminating the last year's wage agreement, which formed an annex to the wage contract, i.e. the second part of the plant collective labour agreement (ZUZP), whose text is compatible with the wage contract of November 2000. This rather complicated – putting it mildly – legal structure results from the lack of separate regulation relating to remuneration rules in our plant. Lack of this document caused several times stupefaction of inspectors from the State Labour Inspection. However, this fact did not bring about any changes and the remuneration regulations are still missing. The mass media and the EWC in GME were informed on 5 October about the fact of submission of the notice on termination of a part of the Agreement.
Similarly like during our industrial dispute in spring this year all employees will be informed about undertaken measures and talks aiming at increase in wages. Already in the next week, the first mass meeting will take place. On Wednesday (10 October) they will be held in the Press Center and on Thursday (11 October) in the canteen of the Assembly Department, each day at 6.10, 13.30 and 14.10. We invite cordially everybody to come there. Remember please, that this dispute concerns your money!
Chairman of MOZ NSZZ Solidarność
General Motors Manufacturing Poland
Sławomir Ciebiera
