International Encyclopedia of Revolution and Protest

Extract

In contrast to other communist states behind the former Iron Curtain, trade unions in Poland were central actors both during the events preceding the fall of communism in 1989 and during the first transition years to the promising world of market democracy. Trade unions' political involvement between 1989 and 1993 rested on a legacy of workers' protests and union activism during communism, most importantly the much-celebrated “self-limiting revolution' ( Staniszkis 1984 ) of the Solidarity trade union in 1980–1. The particularly active and rebellious nature of Polish society during the transition was largely due to trade union involvement ( Ekiert & Kubik 1999 ; Ost 2002 ). Union involvement expressed both hope and rising social expectations and, amid great economic hardships, social apathy and defensive employee protest. At once a trade union and a broad-based democratic social and political movement, Solidarity was the dominant union from 1988 to 1993. It spawned new political parties and was the main social force behind the first post-communist government in Poland. Its all-encompassing role was compared to that of the Catholic Church and the former Polish Communist Party. Solidarity attracted activists with strict trade unionist orientations as well as those interested in wider political activism, opportunities for career advancement, or the betterment of the country. ... log in or subscribe to read full text