Bigger doesn't necessarily mean better benefits
The degree to which employees of top Polish firms share in company profit and how that profit is distributed to the average worker in the form of benefits varies widely, sources said.
Some companies have well-developed social and professional benefit programs, while others are unable or unwilling to reward their employees in the same way. Still others spend so much on benefits that little is left over for salaries. In general, employers appear touchy on the subject.
"This information is part of the internal politics of the company and not available to the public," said Adam Taukert, Powszechny Zaklad Ubezpieczen's (PZU) press spokesman.
At one end of the spectrum are state-owned companies such as State Forests (LP), whose employees benefit no more or less than they are legally entitled to. "It's a state institution," said Tomasz Zasada, head of LP's human resources and training department. "The company can spend only what is in the law." This means, for example, that no bonuses can be given to employees.
According to law, any company with more than 20 employees must establish a so-called "social fund," which can be used by workers for a variety of purposes such as an unexpected hospitalization. The amount in the fund is a calculation based on the average national salary and the number of employees in the company. Last year, employee allotments amounted to about zl. 500 per head. A company's internal regulations, however, dictate what the money can be spent on. In most companies, employees receive a small stipend (taxed at 19%) when they take a vacation lasting longer than two weeks. The fund can also be used by employees to send their kids to summer camp or for low-interest housing loans. At Totalizator Sportowy (National Lottery), for instance, an employee can take out a mortgage loan for up to zl. 7,000 at 4% interest.
Some companies feel that spending money on social or physical activities helps to make employees feel better about their employer. Three-quarters of Totalizator's staff recently attended the film "Pan Tadeusz," said Alicja Grabowska, a specialist with the company. And if someone wants to take care of their body, then Polska Telefonia Cyfrowa (Era GSM) is the firm to work for. Apart from staff retreats, the company heavily subsidizes memberships at world-class fitness clubs and even has a shooting gallery for more stressed out workers. Last year, the company paid for a few employees to climb the highest mountain peaks in the world. The Polish Power Grid (PSE) also offers its employees sports facilities, which allows them to practice in rented gyms and compete in tournaments.
Ambitious employees may place more value on practical and professional benefits than movie tickets and fitness club memberships. Comprehensive training programs, for example, are still relatively uncommon among Polish companies. The Polish Power Grid provides an average of 30 hours of training a year. In 1999, every Daewoo FSO Motor employee had on average six days of training. Polski Koncern Naftowy (PKN) Orlen, the nation's largest fuel company, boasts a well-developed training program in cooperation with research institutes and universities such as the Warsaw School of Economics (SGH). Era GSM also has a comprehensive training program that operates nearly non-stop in some departments. "An average employee is trained a few times a year," said Bogdan Markiewicz, the deputy to the press spokesman at Era GSM.
At the other end of the spectrum, however, is trading company Bartimpex, which only provides a computer course, said Radoslaw Slomka, assistant to the director of the company.
Outside of social perks and training programs, free private health care is also a benefit that most employees treasure. However, companies offering private health care are rare. Out of the firms interviewed for this article, only Daewoo and Era GSM provide their employees with full, free-of-charge membership at private health clinics. And no company interviewed offers an additional pension plan, the so-called "third pillar" of last year's health care reform. The third pillar allows employees to receive a higher pension upon retirement, which is especially important for people whose salaries are low.
Employees who consider time spent out of the office as the greatest benefit of all might consider applying their overtime hours toward the future. Both Daewoo and Polish State Railways (PKP) say this practice is permitted in their companies. Other firms have found a better way of dealing with overtime by creating contracts, which set no limits on the time that employees work, thereby eliminating the whole concept of overtime. Such unlimited contracts usually apply to the heads of departments, whose work day rarely finishes after eight hours.
Motivating employees with financial bonuses based on performance is a practice known to only a few companies, such as Era GSM. Other firms hand out bonuses that do not necessarily depend on performance. At Bartimpex, holidays such as Christmas, Women's Day, or the company's anniversary are occasions for a bonus, Slomka said. Other firms use different methods to try to satisfy their employees.
"Our motivation is the fact that we work in a good company," said Krystyna Danilczyk, press spokeswoman at Daewoo.
At the same time, an abundance of company perks are not necessarily satisfying to everyone.
"Although the majority of our staff is satisfied with the benefits, the youth isn't really. Young people prefer that if more is demanded from them, then they have a bigger salary," said Katarzyna Zak, a specialist at PKN. Young people would prefer to earn more and have fewer benefits, she added.
