Disability contributions cut

The Sejm has adopted an amendment to the bill on the social insurance system (ZUS) which lowers disability-insurance contributions from 13 percent of a worker's salary to six percent. The changes will take effect in two stages. On July 1, contributions will be decreased by three percentage points on the part of the employees. Starting next year, the contribution will be further decreased by two percentage points for both employees and employers.

Minister of Finance Zyta Gilowska said the passing of the amendment heralded a "good day for Poland," adding that costs of labor will decrease by one-fifth as a result of the new regulations. The Ministry of Finance estimates that wages will increase by around nine percent net. The cost of cutting disability pension contributions is estimated at zł.20 billion, including around zł.3.5 billion this year.

Jeremi Mordasewicz from the Polish Confederation of Private Employers (PKPP) Lewiatan praises the decision, saying the employers have long been waiting for it. "We would prefer it to be more symmetrical, with equal cuts on the sides of both the employees and employers, but this still is better than nothing," he said.

Mordasewicz claims that this move will allow employers to increase wages by more than the current annual growth rate of six percent, which would reflect the increase in labor efficiency.  He estimates that a person earning an average salary could count on more than zł.120 extra in his or her salary.