Instytut Pracy i Spraw Socjalnych

About the Institute of Labour and Social Studies

The Institute of Labour and Social Studies – ILSS (Instytut Pracy i Spraw Socjalnych) based in Warsaw,. Poland, is a scientific research institute. The Institute has been operating for forty years serving not only government administration and policy makers, but also taking active part in academic research works, tutoring and supervising series of publications, especially those valuable in the teaching process. The Institute’s basic research works are accompanied by applied studies, and the requirements of current and strategic social and economic policies. The main forms of activities are:
Research activities as: statutory research, State Committee for Scientific Research grants, international projects, seminars, conferences;

International co-operation as: international research projects, bilateral research projects, data base development;
Expert reports and consulting as: assignments commissioned by various institutions, activities of public services; Education as: post-graduate studies, phd studies.
The research activities of the Institute cover the labour and social policy questions in an interdisciplinary manner. The research directions are adjusted to the current needs of the national socio-economic policy, and comprise such areas as economy, law, political sciences, sociology, pedagogic sciences. The research covers the topics crucial to currently pursued socio-economic policy and directions of change processes, such as:

	Labour problems (labour market policy, migration for work, human resources management, working time, remuneration and motivation systems, occupational science, labour law).

	Collective labour relations (social partners, collective disputes, employee participation, collective bargaining, collective agreements, collective labour law).

	Social policy (state social policy, social security, social institutions and instruments, family problems and family policy, poverty, social exclusion and counteracting measures).

Institute research findings are used by the central and local government administration as well as by business entities. The publishing house of the Institute prepares numerous publications (for Polish and international markets) that are useful in the teaching process. The seminars and conferences organized by ILSS are forums for exchanging experiences, ideas, expertise and knowledge on a national and international level. The researchers employed in the Institute are recognized scientists, both in Poland and abroad. Their expertise and experience encourages foreign partners to undertake international research projects with ILSS. As a leader of labour and social studies in Poland, ILSS took part in numerous EU funded research activities under 5^th & 6^th FP, PHARE, Leonardo da Vinci, etc.

The Institute has actively participated in the processes of accession and integration of Poland into the European Union. In the wake of the accession the research activities focused on:

-Problems of adaptation of Polish law to European legal regulations,

-Influence of EU integration on labour market situation and trends,

-Labour market and social policy and the challenges of integration,

-European and Polish standards of social security,

-Social exclusion and reintegration.

Poland’s accession into the European Union on 1^st of May 2004 does not mark the end of the ILSS activities and struggles in these research areas. On the contrary, we expect new problems to appear and to be identified and dealt with.

If you have any questions regarding activities or research of ILSS, please feel free to contact us. We are eager to undertake any form of international cooperation with institutions and individuals.

Institute of Labour and Social Affairs

address:
ul. Bellotiego 3B, 01-022 Warsaw, Poland

secretarial office: tel. (48 22) 636 72 00, 636 72 10

e-mail:instprac@ipiss.com.pl
Management:dr Bożenna Balcerzak-Paradowska, General Director of the ILSS
Izabela Hebda-Czaplicka, Economic Director

Institute of Labour and Social Affairs

address: ul. Bellotiego 3B, 01-022 Warsaw, Poland

secretarial office: tel. (48 22) 636 72 00, 636 72 10

e-mail: instprac@ipiss.com.pl

Basic Information
The Institute of Labour and Social Affairs (IPiSS) is a research centre whose interdisciplinary studies concern problems of labour and social policy. Economics, law, political studies, sociology and pedagogy are subjects of studies prepared by the Institute. The Institute has exist for almost thirty five years on the basis of the Act of 26 July 1985 of research and development centres (with subsequent amendments) and the resolution of the Council of Ministers of 23 June 1972 on establishment of the Institute of Labour and Social Affairs. The research conducted by the Institute has served not only central administration organs and social politicians but also university teachers supplying them with some useful teaching material. Alongside main research activities of the Institute applied studies have also been conducted. The subject of research has been systematically regulated by current needs of the socio-economic policy of Poland. The research conducted by the Institute is in many fields precursory. This refers especially to the following areas:

analysis of the labour market and unemployment;
migration processes;
industrial relations and processes of restructuring and privatisation of Polish enterprises;
development of the third sector institutions in social policy;
new insurance systems, i.e. unemployment insurance, health insurance and supplementary pensions;
the process of adjusting Polish labour and social insurance law to the legislation of the Council of Europe and European Community.

Main directions and form of activity
The Institute of Labour and Social Affairs has conducted research in the fields of labour, wage system, distribution of income, living standards, social insurance and other forms of social security as well as collective and individual labour law. The research also deals with the subjects essential to the current socio-economic policy and the directions of transformations in the attempt to meet the challenge of the period of transformations of the political system and economy in Poland. The research conducted by the ILSA covers nine main subjects.

1. Multidimensional analyses of the Polish labour market

This includes microeconomic analyses of employment policy and the sources of unemployment on the institutional level. The main attention is put to the influence the transformation and privatisation processes have on employment policy. These problems are critical due to the growing importance of microeconomic aspects in economic policy.

2. Labour management

3. Wages in market economy
The research into the wage system goes two ways. On the one hand a study on the wage system in the state budget sector in conducted, involving particularly comparative analyses. On the other hand negotiation mechanisms of regulating the wage system are observed and new related proposals are formulated.

4. Migration in the period of economic transformation
Migration processes in Poland, both internal and external, are becoming more intense. They significantly influence the labour market, the condition of industrial enterprises and family income. Comparative and international research in this area is conducted on a wide scale.

5. Industrial relations in Poland
The research covers relations between trade unions and employers, collective disputes and workers' participation in state-owned and private companies. The research in based on extensive own empirical research in new areas of Polish reality.

6. Poverty and related social policy
Poverty becomes more severe in the transformation period. An interdisciplinary team has been researching into and observing poverty for several years, also through comparative approach, including the Central and Eastern European countries. In addition, following the decision of the Council of Ministers, every three months the Institute of Labour and Social Affairs have been calculating the minimum income.

7. Social security system
The ILSA team of experts working on the issues of the social security reform is one of the best qualified in the subject in Poland. It has had much experience in comparative studies of pension systems, unemployment insurance, etc. It also conducts wide-scale systematic research regarding the family in the transformation period.

8. Individual and collective labour law
With the view of future Polish membership in the European Union extensive studies have been conducted for many years regarding the issues of adjusting Polish labour and social security law to the EU legislation. Moreover, preparation of commentaries and manuals explaining recent changes to the labour code is in progress. The involvement of the Institute of Labour Staff in the creation of the new labour legislation should also be underlined (Prof. L. Florek and Prof. J. Wratny are members of the Committee of the Labour Law Reform). Staff members of the Institute are also involved in the activities of new Social Dialogue institutions in Poland. Ms Barbara Skulimowska is the Manager from the national list of the Minister of Labour and Social Policy and the Secretary of the Polish Mediators Association).

9. Studies of professions in Poland
The first modern „Classification of Professions and Specialisation" have been complied by the Institute of Labour and Social Affairs in accordance with the ISCO norms. The study is regularly updated. Activities undertaken by the Institute of Labour and Social Affairs include:
organisation and conducting internal research, as well as research commissioned by other Polish or foreign institutions;

expertise and consultancy;
organisation of conferences and seminars;
publishing activity;
training activities within the scope of labour law, social insurance, earning migrations. Training is organised for enterprise and public service representatives.

The Institute employs 31 researchers, including 11 professors representing various branches and specialisation (economists, lawyers, sociologists, specialists in politics).

Instytut Pracy i Spraw Socjalnych