Gdynia shipyard clings to resort
Subsidized holiday resorts, for instance, had been an integral part of a workplace under communism. Now, Guminski says, many factories are "telling workers to go wherever they want to. They're just interested in paying the wages and nothing else."
The unions acknowledge that the resorts were in shabby condition and that many workers will go elsewhere, now that they have that option and the money to travel. The Solidarity union vociferously disagreed when a mountain resort was sold off last year.
So, while most factories have gotten rid of their vacation resorts, the Gdynia shipyard has fought to hold on to theirs.
The shipyard's resorts and other "social assets" now are managed by an independent agency, Baltway, which is owned 100% by the shipyard.
None of six resorts - three in the mountains, one on the Baltic and one in the Mazury lake area - was self-supporting, says Przemyslaw Drabczyk, Baltway president.
"Costs were averaging 25%-30% higher than income," he says.
In addition, there were two workers' hostels in Gdynia and Sopot, a football field and other sports facilities.
The 10,000-square-meter Gdynia hostel used to house about 500 workers. Now it is a major office building, with 110 companies as tenants, including Centertel and Compaq. The six-year renovation is continuing, being financed out of rental revenue rather than through bank loans, with the overall cost estimated at zl. 20 million ($844,416).
The hostel in Sopot was converted into a three-star hotel, with rooms renting for between DM 40-DM 80 ($29-$58) a room and Germans the major guests. These two investments are the Baltway's "locomotives," Drabczyk says.
That's essential, Drabczyk concedes, because "unfortunately we have another two massive resorts that were built in the communist past, on huge grounds, and the standard is really poor." One is Wiezyca, which houses 300 people, and Jastrzebia Gora which has one huge building and a cluster of smaller ones.
He says the Maciejka resort in the Beskidy mountains was sold because it cost too much to compete for tourists, now that everyone can choose where to go. It was one of 25 factory resorts on 10 hectares of land and was far from the most compelling. Selling it caused much criticism, Drabczyk says, "because people had gotten used to it. But it was the only decision, for our finances."
A two-week stay for a couple would cost $200; the worker would pay $50 and the shipyard would cover the rest. The bottom line: a $50,000 annual deficit. With the money from the sale, the company upgraded the heating and electrical plant at the Wiezyca resort. The longer-term goal there and at Jastrzebia Gora is to privatize some parts of the resorts - the food service, for instance. So far, he has stemmed the losses at the two gigantic resorts. "But they are like an old car: you fix one thing and something else breaks," Drabczyk says.
Another problem is that the resorts are open only three months a year; they are winterized but rarely used past prime vacation months.
Baltway now is looking further afield for resorts to give workers, and rank-and-file, tourists who walk in wanting vacation resorts. Baltway is negotiating to buy some of Albania's former factory resorts on the Adriatic Sea.
"Albania is pretty cheap and they're giving discounts at the moment," Drabczyk says. "There are problems with loans and ownership, but we can afford to buy it and think it would be very profitable in the future."
If this happens, Baltway would be following in the footsteps of the Gdynia repair shipyard, which bought an Albanian shipyard.
"They're now the biggest foreign investor in Albania after Coca Cola," Drabczyk says. "We'd like to be the third largest."
The unions acknowledge that the resorts were in shabby condition and that many workers will go elsewhere, now that they have that option and the money to travel. The Solidarity union vociferously disagreed when a mountain resort was sold off last year.
So, while most factories have gotten rid of their vacation resorts, the Gdynia shipyard has fought to hold on to theirs.
The shipyard's resorts and other "social assets" now are managed by an independent agency, Baltway, which is owned 100% by the shipyard.
None of six resorts - three in the mountains, one on the Baltic and one in the Mazury lake area - was self-supporting, says Przemyslaw Drabczyk, Baltway president.
"Costs were averaging 25%-30% higher than income," he says.
In addition, there were two workers' hostels in Gdynia and Sopot, a football field and other sports facilities.
The 10,000-square-meter Gdynia hostel used to house about 500 workers. Now it is a major office building, with 110 companies as tenants, including Centertel and Compaq. The six-year renovation is continuing, being financed out of rental revenue rather than through bank loans, with the overall cost estimated at zl. 20 million ($844,416).
The hostel in Sopot was converted into a three-star hotel, with rooms renting for between DM 40-DM 80 ($29-$58) a room and Germans the major guests. These two investments are the Baltway's "locomotives," Drabczyk says.
That's essential, Drabczyk concedes, because "unfortunately we have another two massive resorts that were built in the communist past, on huge grounds, and the standard is really poor." One is Wiezyca, which houses 300 people, and Jastrzebia Gora which has one huge building and a cluster of smaller ones.
He says the Maciejka resort in the Beskidy mountains was sold because it cost too much to compete for tourists, now that everyone can choose where to go. It was one of 25 factory resorts on 10 hectares of land and was far from the most compelling. Selling it caused much criticism, Drabczyk says, "because people had gotten used to it. But it was the only decision, for our finances."
A two-week stay for a couple would cost $200; the worker would pay $50 and the shipyard would cover the rest. The bottom line: a $50,000 annual deficit. With the money from the sale, the company upgraded the heating and electrical plant at the Wiezyca resort. The longer-term goal there and at Jastrzebia Gora is to privatize some parts of the resorts - the food service, for instance. So far, he has stemmed the losses at the two gigantic resorts. "But they are like an old car: you fix one thing and something else breaks," Drabczyk says.
Another problem is that the resorts are open only three months a year; they are winterized but rarely used past prime vacation months.
Baltway now is looking further afield for resorts to give workers, and rank-and-file, tourists who walk in wanting vacation resorts. Baltway is negotiating to buy some of Albania's former factory resorts on the Adriatic Sea.
"Albania is pretty cheap and they're giving discounts at the moment," Drabczyk says. "There are problems with loans and ownership, but we can afford to buy it and think it would be very profitable in the future."
If this happens, Baltway would be following in the footsteps of the Gdynia repair shipyard, which bought an Albanian shipyard.
"They're now the biggest foreign investor in Albania after Coca Cola," Drabczyk says. "We'd like to be the third largest."
