In order to provide an overview of issues relating to the application of ratified social security Conventions, the Committee considers it appropriate to examine Conventions Nos 12, 17, 19, 24, 25, 42 and 102 together.

The Committee takes note of the observations of the Independent and Self-Governing Trade Union “Solidarnosc”, received on 7 September 2023, and of the Government’s reply in this respect.

Article 1. Convention 12. Coverage of agricultural workers. The Committee takes note of the observations of “Solidarnosc”, which indicate that farmers, farmers aids, and farmers’ families are only covered by the “one-off” compensation in case of a permanent or long-term damage to their health as a result of an accident at work but are not afforded the other benefits provided by section 6 of the Act on Social Insurance, such as disability and survivors’ pension. The Committee recalls that Article 1 of the Convention affords to all agricultural wage-earners the same compensation for personal injury as a result of an accident at work. The Committee requests the Government to provide its comments in this respect and to indicate whether agricultural wage-earners are afforded the same benefits in case of an accident at work as those provided by section 6 of the Act on Social Insurance.

Article 1. Convention 17. Coverage of workers engaged in civil law contracts. The Committee takes note of the observations of “Solidarnosc”, which indicate that 1,448,000 workers were not covered by accident insurance in 2022, of which nearly 100,000 (the equivalent of 6.5 per cent of the civil contracts audited by the Labour Inspectorate) were engaged in irregular contracts for a specific task to disguise employment relationships. The Committee notes the Government’s reply in this respect, indicating that pursuant to section 8(2) of the Act on the Social Insurance, workers engaged in agency contracts, contracts of mandate or other contracts for the provision of services in accordance with the Civil Code, are also subject to mandatory disability pension insurance and accident insurance. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on whether the employers who were reported for concluding irregular civil contracts were ordered to pay overdue social security contributions with regard to accident compensation in respect to the workers concerned.

Application of Convention No. 19 in practice. The Committee takes note of the observations of the “Solidarnosc”, which indicate that fines imposed on employers who violate the labour rights of foreign workers are often too low. The Committee also notes the observation that a large share of foreign workers is working informally, engaged in the platform economy and does not have access to social security benefits. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in its report regarding the provision of compensation for industrial accidents in the form of pensions or disability benefits to 632,307 workers from over 160 nationalities, through the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) in 2022. The Committee also takes note of the indication that the Government, despite a few caveats, is positively aligned with the draft Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on improving working conditions on platforms, which includes access to social protection rights. In this context, the Committee requests the Government to provide information concerning the penalties imposed on employers for not reporting foreign workers to the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) and to indicate cases in which foreign workers’ rights to the payment of compensation for accidents at work have been established as a result of inspections undertaken.

Article 2 of Convention No. 42. Schedule. List of occupational diseases. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government that all diseases indicated in the Schedule to Article 2 of the Convention can be considered occupational diseases under section 235 of the Labour Code, provided that their work-related nature has been confirmed with a high degree of probability. The Committee would like to recall that the Schedule appended to Article 2 of the Convention establishes a legal presumption of the occupational origin of the diseases listed therein whenever the workers in question are employed in the corresponding trades, industries and processes. In light of this, the Committee requests that the Government provide detailed information on the procedures adopted for the diagnosis of an occupational disease listed in the Schedule appended to the Article 2 of the Convention and the average duration of these procedures in relation to the confirmation of its work-related nature.

Part XIII (Common provisions) of Convention No. 102. Article 71(3). General responsibility of a Member State for the due provision of medical care benefits. The Committee notes with interest the information provided by the Government on the various measures taken to improve the standard and quality of health services. With regard to waiting times for different medical treatments, the Committee also notes two measures aimed at reducing waiting times for healthcare services: (i) the significant increase in financial spending on public health in recent years, that will reach 170 billion zlotys in 2023, and (ii) the gradual removal of the National Health Fund’s funding limits for certain types of procedures (such as cataract and endoprosthesis surgery, endocrinology, cardiology, neurology and outpatient orthopaedic treatments and highly specialised services). The Committee further observes that the Government, in its 2021 report in response to the conclusions of the European Committee of Social Rights, also indicated significant reductions in waiting times for various types of medical procedures, by an average of 115 per cent for urgent treatments and 70 per cent for other treatments. The Committee takes due note of the measures taken to ensure the provision of medical care benefits in this regard.

Finally, the Committee has been informed that, based on the recommendations of the Standards Review Mechanism Tripartite Working Group (SRM Tripartite Working Group), the Governing Body has decided that member States for which Conventions Nos 17 and 18 are in force should be encouraged to ratify the more recent Employment Injury Benefits Convention, 1964 [Schedule I amended in 1980] (No. 121), or the Social Security (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1952 (No. 102), accepting its Part VI (see GB.328/LILS/2/1). The Committee therefore encourages the Government to follow up the Governing Body’s decision at its 328th Session (October–November 2016) approving the recommendations of the SRM Tripartite Working Group and to consider ratifying Convention No. 121 or Convention No. 102 (Part VI) as the most up-to-date instruments in this subject area.