This is what Biedronka's negotiations with its employees looked like. “The First Step in the Fight”
Employees of the Biedronka chain started negotiations with the company's management as part of a collective dispute. Trade unionists from “Solidarity” presented 10 demands to the employer, the most important of which are demands for salary increases and improved working conditions. The demands also include introducing bonuses, increasing store staffing and changing work organization. Discussions with the management board began on Thursday, and the next meeting is scheduled for March. This is “the first formal step in the fight for decent working conditions and pay for 85,000 employees of Jeronimo Martins Polska,” wrote Gabriela Kaim, president of NSZZ “Solidarność” in Biedronka, on Facebook.
See also: “Let's start with the Łódź region.” The first referendums before the strike in Kaufland will be held there
A difficult start to negotiations at Biedronka
Before the talks even took place, there were misunderstandings regarding the composition of the employee delegation at the meeting with management representatives. “I must admit that already at the organizational stage there were signals that could hardly be considered a good prognosis. The employer's side tried to influence the composition of the social side's negotiation group.” wrote Gabriela Kaim. The head of “Solidarity” had already informed that the employer would not like to see, among others, a trade union lawyer or experts at the negotiating table.
However, the trade unionists did not agree to this proposal and were even outraged by it. “The employer will not tell us who he wants to conduct negotiations! It was an attempt to interfere with the independence of employee representation, undermining the foundation of social dialogue,” we read in Gabriela Kaim's statement.
See also: “Embarrassing” rates at Auchan. There is an ongoing dispute about pay rises
Despite the initial hiccups, the meeting started on time and was substantive, as the union head notes. The main issues discussed were wages and the rising cost of living, but the most emotional topic was working conditions in stores. As Gabriela Kaim emphasizes, the mood online is tense, many employees are asking about radical forms of dispute, e.g. strikes. The negotiations are not over yet, the date of the next meeting is being discussed.
