National Commission downplays Solidarity's open conflict with gov't

Labor Union Solidarity (Solidarnosc) erupted in open conflict on Tuesday with the government, demanding a raise in the cost-of-living increase for 2000 as well as an increase in the minimum wage next year. Meanwhile, Janusz Sniadek, vice president of Solidarity's National Commission, excluded the possibility of a general strike or a vote of no confidence by the labor union deputies in the government, saying "I categorically want to distance myself from certain speculations that this decision was a political one. This is simply the result of weak social dialogue in the Tripartite Commission and a sign of the Unions' desperation." (Rzeczpospolita, p. A2) P.J.