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Their own stories – how Polish construction workers posted to Sweden experience their job situation, or resistance versus life projects

Author

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  • Christer Thörnqvist

    (University of Skövde, Sweden; PhD, associated professor in work science and senior lecturer in business administration and HRM)

  • Sebastian Bernhardsson

    (University of Gothenburg; BA in European Studies)

Abstract

This study draws primarily on in-depth interviews with nine male Polish construction workers posted to Sweden in the early 2010s. The emphasis lies on their own experiences of being exposed to what they saw as unjust working conditions, and why they accept them or react against them. The overarching research questions are why Polish workers go to Sweden, and, more importantly, why they stay even when they feel unfairly treated or directly cheated by their employers. The main points of interest are wages, work environment, employment contracts and relations with different labour market players, including the EU. It was very clear that none of the Polish workers had ever heard of the EU Posted Workers Directive. Still, the lack of serious resistance, our study argues, was not because of poor knowledge about their legal rights, but was linked to a wish to fulfil a ‘life project’ back home in Poland, such as building a house, starting a company, being able to afford to start a family and raise children, or saving for retirement. This wish helped the workers to swallow ‘unfair’ treatment.

Suggested Citation

  • Christer Thörnqvist & Sebastian Bernhardsson, 2015. "Their own stories – how Polish construction workers posted to Sweden experience their job situation, or resistance versus life projects," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 21(1), pages 23-36, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:treure:v:21:y:2015:i:1:p:23-36
    DOI: 10.1177/1024258914561409
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Christer Thörnqvist & Charles Woolfson, 2012. "When tender turns tough: posted workers and the tendering regime in the Swedish construction industry," Construction Management and Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 30(7), pages 525-533, November.
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    Cited by:

    1. Ines Wagner & Lisa Berntsen, 2016. "Restricted rights: obstacles in enforcing the labour rights of mobile EU workers in the German and Dutch construction sector," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 22(2), pages 193-206, May.

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