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Poland Impact on Productivity and Wages
Experts predicted that the highly restrictive
stabilization
policy would suppress production, but the extent of the
decline
exceeded all projections. Industrial output declined by 24
percent in 1990 and by another 12 percent in 1991. In 1990
all
branches of industry registered a substantial decline. In
1991
only the food industry showed a modest increase in output.
In
agriculture the situation was somewhat better. Gross
agricultural
production declined by 2.2 percent in 1990 and by 2.4
percent in
1991. In both years, however, the grain harvest was a very
robust
28 million tons.
Gross domestic product
(GDP--see Glossary)
declined by 12
percent in 1990 and by 8 percent in 1991. Gross fixed
investment, after declining by 2.4 percent in 1989, decreased by 10.6
percent
in 1990 and by 7.5 percent in 1991. Consumption declined
by 11.7
percent in 1990 but increased by 3.7 percent in 1991. The
decline
in investment meant that no significant modernization and
restructuring could take place, which in turn jeopardized
future
growth. The number of unemployed people reached 1.1
million or
6.1 percent of the labor force, at the end of 1990 and 2.2
million people, or 11.4 percent, at the end of 1991 (see
table 16, Appendix).
Real personal incomes decreased by 22.3 percent in
1990, but
they increased by 12.7 percent in January-September 1991.
Real
wages, excluding agriculture and jobs financed directly
from the
state budget, declined by 29.2 percent in 1990 and
increased by
2.0 percent in 1991. The average real value of pensions
decreased
by 14 percent in 1990, then increased by 15 percent in
1991.
Data as of October 1992
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