Mirosława Grodzka, Zbigniew
Mitura
The Model of Polish Handicraft in the
Opinions of Representatives of
Craftsmen’s Self-Government
Annales Universitatis Mariae Curie-Skłodowska. Sectio H, Oeconomia 28, 199-207
A N N A L E S
U N I V E R S I T A T I S M A R I A E C U R I E - S K L O D O W S K A L U B L I N — P O L O N I A
VOL. X X V III, 16 SECTIO H 1994
Z a k ł a d N a u k o P r a c y W y d z i a łu E k o n o m ic z n e g o U M C S
M i r o s ł a w a G R O D Z K A , Z b i g n i e w M I T U R A
The Model of Polish Handicraft in the Opinions of Representatives of Craftsman’s Self-Governm ent
M odeli rzem iosła p o lsk ieg o w św ie tle opinii p rzed sta w icieli sam orządu rzem ieśln iczego
I. In t he socialist economy, whose m echanism of functioning was based on c e n tral p lanning and d irectin g th e economic processes, h a n d i c raft had lim ited possibilities. The ran g e of activities of individual h a n d ic raft w as m ark ed by th e s ta te ’s policy — c u rre n t for a given stage of th e c o u n try ’s develo p m en tal stra te g y — to w ards p riv a te en terp rise and legislative reg u latio n s a d ju sted to this policy w hich reg u lated in detail th e organisation and functioning of economic subjects. Those regulations concerned especially th e following: licensing h a n d ic raft a c ti vity, th e policy of in v estm en ts and credits, supply in ra w m aterials, m aterials, tools and prem ises, fixing prices for h a n d ic raft goods and services, organizing th e sales, th e system of taxatio n, tra in in g a p p re n tices in this profession, social insurances. The s ta te ’s policy tow ards h a n d ic raft and th e legislative in stru m e n ts w hich accom panied this policy w ere ch aracterized by inconsistency and changeability. The decisions w ere often m ade on th e basis of political and not economic argum en ts. Because, for ideological reasons, th e econom y clearly p re fe rre d social p ro p erty , th e relatio n of s ta te a u th o rities to h a n d ic ra ft w as characterized by d istru st and u n fav o u rab le a ttitu d e . A lthough la te r the view s concerning this problem got liberalized, th e reg u lation s d eterm in in g th e economic acivity of h a n d ic raft w ere a lim itatio n in h ibitin g th e developm ent and functioning of p riv a te en terp rise. Lack of a clear and lo n g -term concept of h a n d ic raft developm ent, fre q u e n t changes of political decisions and legal acts w hich d eterm in ed th e form al-leg islative and economic fra m e w orks of a c tiv ity created a situ atio n of u n c e rtain ty , fe a r and th e feeling of in stability. This had a negative effect on th e developm ent and functio ning of h a n d ic raft, w hich in its n a tu re w as m ean t fo r earn in g m oney.
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Such a situ a tio n discouraged craftsm en from engaging th e ir own m eans into th e developm ent and technological im provem ent of th e ir w orkshops or p re p a ra tio n of th e ir successors.1
H an d icraft is in its n a tu re ad apted to functioning in the conditions of m ark e t economy. It could seem th a t th e process w hich s ta rte d in 1989 of passing from c e n trally plan n ed to m ark e t econom y should have created favourable conditions for th e developm ent of th is form of economic ac ti v ity w hich had cen tu ries of tra d itio n behind. U n fo rtu n a tely , in recent years Polish h a n d ic raft has undergone a deep crisis, and according to the opinions of its m em bers tran sfo rm atio n of th e economic system caused severe m ate ria l losses in h an d icraft. T herefore, a question arises of w hy in the fo rm er economic system h a n d ic raft su rv iv ed in spite of u nfav ou rable conditions and it show ed considerable resistance to num erous b a rriers and difficulties, w hile in m ark e t econom y it experiences such a deep crisis.2 The p resen t p a p e r tries to show c e rtain economic and legislative conditions of th e fo rm er and th e p rese n t situ a tio n of h a n d icraft on th e basis of accessible lite ra tu re , binding legal acts and docum ents of the Polish H an d icraft A ssociation as published in In form ation Bulletins.
II. Causes of the fav ou rab le d evelopm ent of h a n d ic raft in th e form er economic system should be sought m ainly in those p ro p ertie s of han d icraft w hich m ake it possible to ad ap t itself to d iffe re n t po litical solutions and changing economic conditions. These ch aracteristics include the follow ing 3:
1) d irect link b etw een w ork and th e ow nership of p ro d uction m eans, which stim u la te s cra ftsm en for m ore ratio n al use of production factors;
2) ind ependent m an ag em en t of h an d icraft w orkshops, o ften as fam ily establishm ents, w hich low ers th e costs, sim plifies th e system of m an a gem ent and solves problem s of th e successors;
3) broad range of h a n d ic raft activ ity including m an u fa ctu re, a rtistic work, building, etc.,
1 On p e r io d iz a tio n of th e s t a te s p o licy t o w a r d s h a n d icr a ft, cf. W. P i o t r o w s k i : Jak ze jść z h u ś t a w k i , „T ygodnik D em o k ra ty czn y ” 1971, no. 41.
2 On the con dition s of h a n d ic r a ft d e v e l o p m e n t , cf. H. G r a s z e w i c z; P o d
s t a w y g o s p o d a r c z e j i s p o łe c z n e j u ż y t e c z n o ś c i r z e m io s ła a p o l i t y k a je g o r o z w o j u w w a r u n k a c h r e f o r m y g o sp o d a r c z e j, „Z eszyty H isto ry cz n o -P o lity czn e S D ” 1984, 1,
p. 28ff. M. G r o d z k a , Z. M i t u r a : P o d s t a w o w e u w a r u n k o w a n i a r o z w o j u p o l sk iego rzem iosła w latach o siem d ziesią ty ch , A nn. U n iv . M ariae C u rie-S k łod ow sk a, sectio H, vol. X X III, 10, L ublin 1989, p. 137ff, id.: B a r ie r y , „T ygodnik D em o k ra ty cz n y ” 1984, nos. 4, 5.
3 Cf. H. G r a s z e w i c z : op. cit., p. 3 1 f f C z . N i e w a d z k i : Małe p r z e d s i ę
b io r s tw a p r z e m y s ł o w e w g o sp o d a r ce n a r o d o w e j, [in:] P r z e m y s ł d r o b n y i rz em io sło ,
W arsaw 1958, p. 109; M.- R y l k e : N o w e i n s t y t u c j e r eg u la cji p r a w n e j rz em iosła, „P ań stw o i P ra w o ” 1973, nos. 8— 9, p. 123ff. id.: N o w e i n s t r u m e n t y p r a w n e w d z i e
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4) high level of q u alifications of th e people pu rsu in g h a n d ic raft ac ti vity , w hich is acknow ledged by p ro p er docum ents such as m a s te r’s and o th er diplom as;
5) producing goods and ren d erin g services of high quality, often u niq ue ones and req u irin g g reat skills, w hich can satisfy th e needs of people w ith big dem ands;
6) direct contact w ith th e local m ark e t, wrhich enables fast reaction to th e changing needs of th e consum ers;
7) rela tiv e ly good conditions and low costs of tra in in g the staff for th e needs of h a n d ic ra ft and o th e r dom ains of the economy;
8) rela tiv e ly low costs of production and services.
C raftsm en are u su ally sp atially d ispersed and th ey w ork w ith in a sm all m ark e t. T herefo re, th e re is a possibility of th e ir being exploited in th e process of economic activ atio n and satisfaction of th e needs of local com m unities.4 W hen th e y u n d e rta k e a v a rie ty of economic activity, it is possible to u tilize m ore fu lly th e local resources of raw m aterials, tech nical in fra stru c tu re and th e w orking pow er. In th e situ atio n of excessive lab o u r force, h a n d ic raft becomes an im p o rta n t em p loy er on the local m ark et. H an d icraft has an advan tag e in solving the local problem s of un em p lo y m en t because: a) new places of w ork are created m ainly from c ra ftsm e n ’s own financial m eans, b) th e costs are rela tiv e ly low er th a n in o th e r spheres of econom y, c) h a n d ic raft a c tiv ity is rela tiv e ly m ore econom ical in using th e pro du ctio n m eans.5
T h ank s to these valours, it is easier fo r h a n d ic raft to en d u re difficult; conditions resu ltin g from th e political solutions and tem p o rary d istu r bances caused by tra n sfo rm atio n s of th e economic system .
III. The above ad v an tages of h a n d ic raft could not have rem ained unno ticed by th e a u th o ritie s of th e Polish P eo ple’s R epublic. They w ere o fte n used in th e economic policy of th e s ta te to soothe th e social tensions caused by alm ost p e rm a n e n t sh ortage of goods and services. The follow ing task s w ere set before h a n d ic raft in this respect:
1) g re a te r possibilities of in v estm ents by m eans of m aking use of the rese rv es at th e disposal of craftsm en , both in th e form of investm ents and th e finacial m eans;
2) soothening th e effects of p e rm a n e n t m a rk e t im balance b etw een th e su p p ly of goods and services on th e one han d and a grow ing effective dem an d on th e other;
4 C f. H. G r a s z e w i c z : R ola i m i e js c e r z e m io s ła w r o z w o j u usług, B ib lio tek a In sty tu tu H andlu W ew n ętrzn eg o i U słu g, W arsaw 1979, p. 14.
5 Cz. N i e w a d z i: P o l i t y k a r o z w o j u rz e m io s ła w Polsce, PW E, W arsaw 1968, p. 30, cf. R zem iosło 2000, c o lle c tiv e w ork, ed. CZR, W arsaw 1983, p. 41.
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3) absorbing th e local su rp lu s of lab o u r force and tra in in g th e sta ff for the needs of h a n d ic raft and o th e r dom ains of th e economy;
4) w ith in cooperation agreem ents, m a n u fa ctu rin g of sm all non -serial and often uniq u e p a rts and elem ents the p ro du ction of w hich in big nationalized firm s w ould be d ifficu lt and u n p ro fitable;
5) using h a n d ic raft as a specific and cheap reserv e of p rod u ctio n and services w hich w as te rrito ria lly dispersed and easy to set in m otion in case such needs should arise for th e economic activatio n of sm all tow ns and estates;
6) using h a n d ic raft in o rd er to increase th e inflow of foreign c u rre n c y th ro u g h ex p o rt of a ttra c tiv e h a n d ic raft articles, activation of a n ti-im porting production.
These tasks w ere often connected w ith fav o urable changes in th e s ta te ’s economic activ ity defined as a ’’green lig h t” for th e d evelop m ent of h an d icraft.
IV. The process of m ark e tiz atio n of th e Polish econom y w hich began in 1989 and deep p olitical refo rm s connected w ith it did not im prove as was expected b u t even w orsened th e situ a tio n of sm all p riv a te m a n u factu re, especially in ag ric u ltu re and han d icraft. In th e process of econo m ic transfo rm atio n s, th e s ta te a u th o ritie s did not p rovide for an y p ro te c tive in stru m e n ts for those form s of economic activ ity , assum ing th a t th e economic su bjects functioning on th e basis of p riv a te o w nersh ip of th e production m eans w ould quickly a d ju st them selves to th e conditions of lib eral m ark e t economy. U n fo rtu n ately , because of a n u m b e r of u n fa vourable factors, Polish h a n d ic raft h as su ffered especially severe losses in recent years. O ut of 500,000 h a n d ic raft e stab lish m en ts existing in th e years 1990— 1993, about 30% gave up th e ir activity. A considerable regress and red u ctio n of th e activ ity of c ra ftsm e n ’s self-g o v ern m en t and h a n d ic raft organisations took place. M ore th a n 1,000 h a n d ic ra ft org an i sations including 26 cham bers, 468 guilds, 494 h a n d ic ra ft co -operatives and 20 w holesale firm s, existed in 1992.® N ow adays, m ost of th em struggle for survival. In th e c ra ftsm en ’s en v iro n m en t th is s ta te is called a crash, collapse, crisis of h a n d ic raft and th is phenom enon is considered to be rela te d to th e follow ing causes.
1. The act related to th e economic a c tiv ity passed on 23 D ecem ber, 1988 proclaim ed fu ll freedom and e q u a lity of th e sub jects in u n d e rta k in g and ru n n in g economic activ ity .7 According to A rticle 1 of th a t act ’’u n d e rta k in g and p u rsu in g economic a c tiv ity is free and allow ed to everybody on th e sam e rights, keeping th e conditions d eterm in ed by
6 B iu lety n D ek ad ow y Z.RZ.Z., W arsaw 10, June, 1992, p. 88. 7 Dz.U. 1988, no. 41, item 324.
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la w ” , and those conditions w ere lim ited to the necessary m inim um . In dep en d en t of th e ty p e od ow nership, all the economic su bjects are s u b m itte d to public and legal b u rd en s and th ey m ake use of bank credits and provision in prod uctio n m eans on th e sam e principles. C ertain privileges w ere only considered for th e sub jects w ith foreign p articip ation . F u ll lib eralizatio n of u n d e rta k in g and p u rsu in g economic a c tiv ity shook the sense of th e ex istence of h a n d ic raft as a sep arate form of economic activ ity .
2. The act rela te d to h a n d ic raft passed on 22 M arch, 1989 did aw ay w ith an obligation of those su bjects to belong to h a n d ic raft organisations and w ith the list of c ra fts d eterm in in g th e kinds of a c tiv ity in h a n d ic raft.3 According to th e craftsm en, legal solutions contained in b oth these acts re su lte d in d e v a lu a tio n of tra d itio n al v alues of professional ethics of h a n d ic raft, w hich was fo rm erly g u arded by s tric t conditions of q u a lifi cations and th e d u ty of ren d e rin g th e services in a reliable w ay. A n u m b e r of elem ents in th e act of economic activ ity caused th e appearance of fictitiou s firm s w hich did not u n d e rta k e any activ ity o r w hich p u rsu ed th is activ ity b u t in a defective and u n reliab le w ay, th e loss being on the p a rt of the receiv ers of goods and services.9 Those elem ents included and especially sim plified sy stem of reg isterin g th e subjects, a broad range of exceptions to th e reg istratio n , lack of th e req u irem e n ts fo r qualifica tions and a considerable lim itatio n of th e controlling functions of self- -go v ern m en t over h a n d ic raft activity.
3. H an d icraft, w hich of its n a tu re w as not afraid of com petition, has e n cou ntered too stro ng and o ften dishonest com petitive strugg le recently. T he activ ity of th e follow ing appeared to be too com petitive for h an d i c ra ft: 1) a h uge n u m b er of economic su b jects w hich u ndertoo k th e ir a c tiv ity on lib eral p rinciples d eterm in ed in th e act of 23 D ecem ber, 1988, 2) sta te and co-operative estab lish m en ts w hich d efend them selves against b a n k ru p tc y u n d e rta k in g any economic a c tiv ity giving th em some pro fit, 3) legal im p o rte r and illegal tra d e rs brin ging in v e ry cheap foreign goods. A t the sam e tim e, th e m ethods of fig h tin g in flatio n used by th e govern m en t caused a radical red u ction of th e dem and for goods and services. 4) An expensive credit dep rived th e c ra ftsm e n of an access to this basic source of financing th e econom ic activ ity , w hile th e ir ow n resources are f a r too insufficient because of low p ro fita b ility of th e m a jo rity of c ra ftsm e n ’s firm s. The economic condition of h a n d ic raft is m ade even by: a) lack of economic stabilizatio n reflected fo r exam ple in too fre q u e n t changes of th e financial regulations, w hich increases th e risk of investing,
8 Dz.U, 1989. no. 17, item 92.
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introducing new technologies and p u rch asing expensive m achines, b) no cooperation of th e g o v ern m en t and financial in stitu tio n s w ith th e organi sations of h a n d ic raft self-go v ern m ent in th e sp h ere of creditin g th e eco nomic activ ity and m aking use of th e w e stern credit lines to th is aim, c) lim ited possibilities of m aking use of cheap p re fe re n tia l cred its and reductions for investm ents, d) defective functioning of banks servicing hand icraft.
V. Regress of Polish h a n d ic raft stim u la te d its activists c en tred m ainly in th e Polish C ra ftsm e n ’s A ssociation and c ra ftsm e n ’s cham bers to u n d e rta k e actions in o rd er to overcom e th e im passe, to se arc h for a new place and a new role fo r h a n d ic raft in th e new economic rea lity . According to th e rep re sen ta tiv e s of these circles, h a n d ic raft can have a positive and im p o rta n t role in th e process of p olitical tran sfo rm atio n s, especially if th e p ro g ram of ’’c u rin g ” it is co rre la ted w ith th e g overn m e n t’s pro g ram of co u n teractin g th e economic recession.
The board of th e Polish C ra ftsm e n ’s A ssociation w hich held its deb ate on 30 S eptem ber, 1992, accepted tw o im p o rta n t docum ents: 1) a pro p o sition of th e p articip a tio n of h a n d ic ra ft in th e g o v ern m en t’s socio-eco- nomic p rogram s, 2) a proposition of having a ’’P act of H a n d ic ra ft” w hich presen ted th e g overnm ent w ith a specific offer of th e p articip a tio n of h an d icraft in overcom ing recession and b uilding a new economic m odel. The ’’P act of H a n d ic ra ft” suggested com plex changes concerning th e policies of tax atio n , credits, social insurances, professiooal tra in in g and changes in legislation follow ing th e fo rm e r.10 Am ong those suggestions the follow ing deserve atten tio n :
1) respecting Polish economic estru c tu res, especially th e ones of so big trad itio n s as han d icraft, in th e process of political tran sfo rm atio n s;
2) unify in g th e s ta te ’s economic policy to w ard s all th e economic subjects, w hich should be tre a te d as equal;
3) th e m eans assigned fo r stim u la tin g th e economy, especially th e ones coming from foreign sources, should be d irected m ain ly fo r th e developm ent of sm all p riv a te en terp rise;
4) hom e m a rk e t should be pro tected against th e inflow of cheap im ported articles and th e outflow of m oney abroad;
5) th e policy of p riv a tiz a tio n should in a g re a te r degree p re fe r th e p articip atio n of th e Polish p riv a te capital, including h a n d ic raft;
6) c ra ftsm en ’s rig h ts to social in suran ce should be m ade equal w ith o th er professional groups and tak e in to g re a te r co n sideration th e p rin ciples of equivalence and v o lu n ta ry ch aracter;
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7) th e sy stem of professional tra in in g in h a n d ic raft should be m ore w idely used and stre n g th e n e d for increasing th e qualifications of the staff;
8) the s ta te ’s economic policy should m ake a g re a te r use of th e in stru m e n ts w hich w ill be m ore efficient in stim u la tin g th e developm ent of h a n d ic ra ft and sm all p riv a te en terp rise. The p oin t is to en su re a clear and stable sy stem of tax atio n , cheap credits, reduced rate s in investm ents and help in freein g of d ebts those h a n d ic raft firm s w hich fell into so- -called ’’d eb t t r a p ” w ith o u t th e ir ow n fau lt.
W hen h a n d ic raft has fav o urab le conditions of developm ent, it can p lay a positive role in th e process of overcom ing recession and getting into th e w ay of grow th. Especially, it can: a) become com petitive for hom e and foreign su b jects and replace tra s h y foreign goods w ith Polish articles of high E uropean sta n d a rd ; b) increase th e range and n u m b er of services, especially in villages and sm all tow ns; c) reduce th e effects of unem ploy m en t, creatin g new cheap places of w o rk and p a rticip a tin g in the process of req u a lify in g th e w o rk ers according to th e p referen ces of th e local lab o u r m ark e t; d) stim u la te th e economic g ro w th th ro u g h cooperative ties w ith big p ro d uctio n estab lish m ents; e) increase the flow of m oney to th e sta te , w hich w ould reduce th e effects of a budget gap; f) s ta r t th e process of form ing th e m iddle class, w hich is a necessary elem en t of dem ocracy.
VI. A ccording to th e opinions of c ra ftsm e n ’s rep resen tativ es, the act of 22 M arch, 1989 bro u g h t about a serious w eakening of han d icraft, both in th e sp here of econom y and organisation. It caused a drop of a firm ’s au th o rity , no resp ect for p ro fe ssio n a lly , craft, no care about th e fu tu re of a firm and th e tra d e . Legal solutions contained in th e acts of h a n d i c ra ft and economic a c tiv ity h it the fu n ctio ning of h a n d ic raft and its o rgan isation al s tru c tu re , th e beginnings of w hich, as fo r th e guilds, go back to th e m ed iaev al tim es. T h a t is th e reason w hy craftsm en speak fo r an act of economic self-g o v ern m en t w hich w ould resto re th e ir fo rm er stan d in g to th e c ra ftsm en ’s self-governm ent. The follow ing changes are p o stu la te d in th e firs t place: 1) a m ore exact definitio n of th e task s of c ra ftsm e n ’s self-g ov ern m en t o rganisation according to th e role w hich th e y should p lay in th e co n tem p o rary economy, 2) resto rin g an obligation of c ra ftsm en to belong to organisational stru c tu re s, 3) ex ten din g the re q u ire m e n t of h av in g professional qualifications onto all th e subjects p u rsu in g econom ic activity , 4) m ain tain in g a list of crafts w hich qualifies c ra ftsm e n ’s jobs.11
11 B iu le ty n D ek a d o w y Z.Rz.P.f W arsaw 10— 30 A u gu st, 1993, nos. 24— 25, a n i 1— 10 June, 1993, No. 17, p. 126.
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The g rea test doubts and arg u m en ts in th e en v iro n m en t of people in volved in th e economic activ ity a p p e ar in connection w ith th e s ta tu to ry d u ty of economic subjects to associate in self-g ov ernm en t organisations, even keeping th e rig h t of choosing an organisation. This stands in oppo sition to th e prin ciple of economic freedom . There is a conviction am ong craftsm en th a t in troducing such a n obligation w ill give rise to g re a te r consolidation and in te g ratio n of c ra ftsm en ’s circles, im p rov em ent of th e q u ality of goods and services, increased p ro fe s s io n a lly and reliab ility , observing th e ru les of professional ethics. Rich tra d itio n s show th a t h a n d i craft needs self-governing organisations w hich w ould coordinate th e dispersed a c tiv ity of c ra ftsm en ’s firm s, a t th e sam e tim e providing th em w ith the necessary help. In th e p rese n t m odel of econom y th e y should p erfo rm th e follow ing functions:
1) rep re sen t th e in te rests of craftsm en in relatio n to th e c e n tral organs of state ad m in istratio n and a d m in istra tiv e and self-governing organs on lo w er levels;
2) influence th e shape of th e s ta te ’s economic policy and the con tents of economic legislation;
3) b rea k th e financial b a rrie r th ro u g h obtainin g th e m eans from d ifferen t sources in and out of th e c o u n try and from economic initiativ es;
4) organise economic cooperation w ith Polish and foreign su bjects th ro u g h giving info rm atio n about th e p a rtn e rs , offers for cooperation, changes in regulations, q u a lity req u irem e n ts, possibilities of o b tainin g m o dem technologies, and th ro u g h d iffe re n t form s of p rom oting goods as w ell as economic, financial, legislative and ecological consulting;
5) give all-rou n d organ isatio nal help and supervise th e course of professional tra in in g of the staffs;
6) realize th e tra d itio n al sup ervising functions in th e form of instance guild co u rts.12 It should be em phasized th a t th is is not a se p ara te d opinion since a n u m b er of E uropean countries such as F rance, G erm any and Italy apply th e p rin ciple of obligatory affiliatio n in th e economic self- -governm ent of h a n d ic raft as w ell as th e re q u ire m e n t of having p ro fessional qualifications by th e people p u rsu in g economic activity.
VII. It follows from th e considerations th a t a d iffe re n t econom ic situ atio n of h an d icraft resu lts from a v a rie ty of causes w hich, how ever, have th e ir origin in th e costs connected w ith a rad ical tra n sfo rm a tio n of the economic system . In varyin g degrees, b u t these costs b u rd en th e whole society. It seem s, how ever, th a t h a n d ic ra ft has su ffered th e m ost severe losses in th is process. T hey are so big th a t w ith o u t th e s ta te ’s help
12 B iu lety n D ek a d o w y Z .R zP ., W arsaw , 5 M>ay, 1993, no. 7, p. 82ff. and d eca d e’s inform ation from 20 M arch, 1992, p. 31.
T he M odel of P o lish H an d icraft in th e Opinions... 207
it could a p p e ar im possible to overcom e regress of han d icraft. The ratio nal a rg u m e n ts e n u m erated in th e p a p e r sp eak for providing an aid to h an d i craft. It is obvious th a t not all th e p o stu lates p u t fo rw ard by rep resen tativ e s of c ra ftsm e n ’s en v iron m ent can be fulfilled. It is not possible to accept those w hich are against th e d irectio n of economic reform s, those w hich could re su lt in lim itin g th e prin ciple of economic freedom or giving h a n d ic ra ft a privileged position in th e econom y th ro u g h the system of crediting, red u ctio n of deb ts o r reduced rate s in inv estm en ts w hich w ould be d iffe re n t from th e g e n erally binding norm s. Such propositions are app ro ved of w hich do n o t shake th e prin ciples of freedom and eq u ality of th e econom ic su b jects and th ey reduce th e effects of tran sfo rm atio n s of th e econom ic system and lay th e bu rd en s resu ltin g from th is process in a m ore re g u la r m anner.
S T R E S Z C Z E N I E
R zem iosło z isto ty sw e j p rzy sto so w a n e jest do fu n k cjo n o w a n ia w gospodarce r y n k o w e j. Z ap oczątk ow an y w 1989 roku proces p rzechodzenia gosp od ark i p olsk iej od cen tra ln ie p lan ow ej do ryn k ow ej p o w in ien stw o rzy ć k orzystn e w a ru n k i dla rozw oju te j form y d ziałaln ości gospodarczej m ającej w ie lo w ie k o w e tra d y cje.
N ie ste ty , w o sta tn ich latach rzem iosło p o lsk ie p rzeżyw a głęb ok i k ryzys, a w e d łu g op in ii jego d ziałaczy tra n sfo rm a cja sy stem u gospodarczego sp o w o d o w a ła w rze m io śle d o tk liw e stra ty m aterialne.
W op racow an iu autorzy starają się o d p ow ied zieć na p ytan ia, d laczego w poprzed nim sy s te m ie gosp od arczym m im o n iesp rzy ja ją cy ch w a ru n k ó w — rzem iosło prze tr w a ło i w y k a z a ło dużą odporność na liczn e b ariery i trudności rozw ojow e, a w w a ru n k a ch gospodarki ryn k ow ej przeżyw a tak g łęb ok i kryzys?
P ró b u ją jed n o cześn ie w y ja śn ić — na p o d sta w ie propozycji p rzed sta w icieli sa m o rządu rzem ieśln iczeg o — co n a leża ło b y uczynić, ab y u sunąć źródła k ryzysu i p rzy w ró cić rzem io słu d aw n ą św ietn ość?
