The news in context of del.icio.us...
Posted on: 2nd August 2005
Portuguese company Jeronimo Martins owns the supermarket chain Biedronka, which is the largest chain in Poland. (JM is owned in turn 49% by Royal Ahold.) In Brazil and Portugual, its markets are called Pingo Doce, Feira Nova, Madeira, and Recheio (also Hipers, Mini-Hipers). Over the past 2 years, Biedronka has been the focus of numerous labour conflicts, lawsuits, a modest anarchist protest campaign and most recently, the first large class action lawsuit taken against an employer in Poland. (It is only the second class action ever taken in Poland.) Biedronka's treatment of labor is well known in this country and has been the subect of numerous articles and TV reports.
OK - I tried to patch together some report about this supermarket chain. Maybe it's too detailed but if you can get some short info around it would be good.
See previous briefs.
http://www.alter.most.org.pl/fa/php/showart.php?artid=212
http://www.alter.most.org.pl/fa/php/showart.php?artid=260
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(Biedronka workers have a web page for victims of Biedronka, in Polish.
http://www.stowarzyszenie-biedronka.pl/index1.html)
100 ex-employees of the supermarket chain have filed a class action suit against Biedronka for 2 million zl. (666,000 dollars) in compensation for thousands of hours of unpaid overtime work. Last year, Bozena Lopacka, a store manager from Elblag, filed suit against Biedronka for unpaid overtime and won her case. However, Martins appealed the case and the award was overturned. Lopacka, who has proved to be a real fighter, took the case back to court; it started again last Friday (29 of July, 2005).
(In English, see article from the International Herald Tribune. She is called the "new Lech Walesa". Unfortunately, like Walesa, she decided to go into politics. http://www.stowarzyszenie-biedronka.pl/Biedronka/artkuly/second_walesa_eng.htm In Portuguese
http://dn.sapo.pt/2005/05/16/suplemento_negocios/simbolo_abuso_direitos_laborais_ong.html
http://dn.sapo.pt/2005/05/16/suplemento_negocios/nao_devemos_desistir_perante_a_injus.html)
Biedronka owns more than 700 supermarkets in Poland and employs about 10,000 people. In May 2004, labour inspectors monitored 229 supermarkets and found numerous violations of the labour code. They found that Biedronka employees worked 12 hours and more per day with no overtime pay, that they had pay deductions taken out by various irregular and illegal means, and that female employees were forced to lift weights which exceeded the health and safety norms. A number of cases were referred to the public prosecutor after this inspection. Solidarity unions were organized in some of the supermarkets.
In one case, 21 year old Aneta Glinska of Ustka died after lifting heavy weights. Biedronka does not employ people specially to unload trucks and lift packages and only recently got some special equipment. Cashiers, mostly women, are forced to move the packages. They have to push things on carts weighing up to one ton.
(About Glinska in Portuguese http://online.expresso.clix.pt/1pagina/artigo.asp?id=24750783)
Katarzyna Wiktorzak, who did this kind of work while pregnant, had a miscarriage. http://www.stowarzyszenie-biedronka.pl/Biedronka/artkuly/ciezarna_poronila.htm
For this work, Wiktorzak earned from 700 to 820 zl. gross. (Up to 200 euro a month before taxes.)
The State Labour Inspectorate continued to make controls at Biedronka. http://www.pip.gov.pl/html/pl/html/01000016.htm (Findings, in Polish.) A total of 678 were made last year. They noted 3813 violations and 112 people were fined a total of 48,920 zl. (This included fines against middle managers.) One person was charged with a criminal offense. The Inspectorate filed 14 requests with prosecutors' offices were they suspect other criminal felonies were committed and asked them to investigate. 5 789 workers were paid 763,339 z³ (almost 200,000 euros) in overtime payments.
Among the labor abuses found, in addition to the abovementioned, were that they falsified records of people's working hours and falsified an account of an accident which took place during working hours. 47% of all shops inspected had improper evidence of working hourings, 28% falsified records on overtime, 39% did not ensure workers the statutory rest time between days worked (which also mean that they were obliged to pay overtime), 68% did not organize people's working hours in accordance with regulations, 32% improperly lowed the workers' pay, 54% did not meet hygenic standards, etc. etc. In the overwhelming majority of stores, work regulations which contradicted the labour code were also enforced.
Amazingly, the firm Jeronimo Martins seems to be passing the buck and mostly blaming middle managers on the whole fiasco. Pedro Da Silva, the CEO claims, "We never forced anyone to act contrary to the law". (http://www.portugalinbusiness.com/%20noticias/noticia.asp?iC=2444&iA=14987) (1 -see below) Now the bosses and work inspectors say that the middle managers have been specially trained to make proper work schedules, a hotline was set up so that workers could report abuse to the board, etc. etc. But looking at Jeronimo Martin's economic performance, one notes that restructuring and labour exploitation in Poland greatly improved its profitability.
In 2000, JM claimed that Poland was draining it and causing it to have stark losses. Its yearly report spoke of "the Polish nightmare".However, something changed in the profitability in Poland. (And if we are to believe the capitalists (which we don't), it has nothing to do with all those poorly trained middle managers falsifying overtime records.) In Poland, sales in 2003 were over 925 million euros and in 2004, over 1,059,000,000 euros, accounting for 30% of JM sales. In 2004, they announced a 78% increase in half-yearly profits and admitted that their high profit was driven by Biedronka. (http://www.cee-foodindustry.com/news/news-ng.asp?id=53976-jeronimo-martins-results
http://www.retailpoland.com/next.php?id=7619)
Further, it is not clear whether or not the State Inspectorate or Solidarity is really following up with implementing changes required at Biedronka. Workers keep reporting irregularities. The JM company for example has taken out ads in the major press claiming that cashiers get physicals which show if they are capable of carrying out their work, which includes lifting and pushing heavy food crates. Copies of doctors' examinations however show that Biedronka did not inform doctors that the women would be required to lift weights. They wrote that the women would have to work as cashiers and, under the "risk" department, they write that the women will have to expend up to 1000 calories at work.
A number of workers from Biedronka claim that some of the areas which Biedronka alleges to have fixed have not at all and that people are still forced to work overtime. Again, Biedronka knows nothing about this. The decision of the appeal court in Gdansk in favour of JM really sent a message to workers about the poor condition of their rights in Poland and about the miserable state of the justice system. Despite overwhelming evidence of abuse by JM, it seems that workers still have problems getting justice.
Laure
Dozens of articles from the press in Polish can be found on the workers' webpages.
(1) From the JM Prospectus
Social Responsibility
Group Jerónimo Martins respects Human Rights within the framework of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, assuming its social responsibility, and seeking to promote the improvement of the quality of life of all those with whom it has relations, as it believes that this is a mission that falls to every one and in particular to the economic agents.
Respect for the Law
The companies that integrate Group Jerónimo Martins conduct their businesses with honesty and integrity and in compliance with the laws of the countries where they operate.
Workers and Employees
Group Jerónimo Martins is committed to ensuring to its employees a healthy working environment and fair and adequate pay so as to promote work motivation and a sense of personal and professional achievement. The Group expects from its employees a high level of moral integrity, loyalty, and strict adherence to an ethical conduct in all areas of activity.
Group Jerónimo Martins and its employees are fully conscious of their social responsibility and act in respect for the legal provisions in force, particularly watching over compliance with the conditions pertaining to the work of minors, of disabled workers or of workers with limited working capacity and to the protection of maternity.