Are corporations sheer evil? Are foreign corporations less popular in our country than our Polish medium and small companies? Suffice to compare the results of remuneration surveys to notice that salaries in companies with foreign capital are much higher than those in Polish enterprises. But is it only the financial aspect that makes working for a foreign employee more attractive?

Although money is not everything, it is a factor closely related with the labour market. Surveys comparing salaries in companies where at least 50% of the capital is Polish with companies where foreign capital dominates show that foreign companies pay much better than Polish ones. “A median monthly salary in Polish companies is PLN 2,600, whereas in foreign companies it is PLN 4,200.
Consequently, foreign companies pay 61.5% more than Polish ones.” Besides there are also perks, usually unavailable in small Polish companies. A company car, daycare for children, a voucher to a fitness centre, integration trips for employees to interesting places all over the world, private health care… are only a few examples, which though they are almost a norm in corporations, they are still but a dream for employees of our local companies.

Apart from a high salary, working for a foreign corporation is associated with prestige. A widely advertised brand name of the concern, a logo that one has recognized from early childhood. An opportunity to make and maintain interesting international contacts, not only to do business, but also to socialize. New knowledge and development not only by actually climbing up the career ladder, but also by participating in seminars, special programmes, international projects, trips – of course, all paid by the corporation.

For those whose boss is despotic, incompetent or rude, foreign corporations seem to be places where corporate culture is at a high level, workers’ rights are respected, one doesn’t have to ask to be given due holiday or due remuneration for overtime... But, in fact, it turns out that, just like small Polish companies, foreign corporations have a lot to improve on. Plus there is the bitterness, less common among the employees of small Polish companies, when workers witness huge money being spent on advertising in the media, whereas their overtime is not paid.

Slowly the image of a corporation as a “paradise on earth” is being replaced by the image of “gold handcuffs”. No room for making decisions, for having influence on strategies, and the ways things are done, often no possibility to see the results of one’s work – all these are reasons why more and more Polish people decide to sacrifice their chance of quick promotion, career or high earnings for the sake of a stress-free job in a small company, where their opinions are taken into account and their work is appreciated.

Undoubtedly, there is no definite answer to whether corporations are evil incarnate. Just like any other entities operating on the market, foreign corporations have advantages and disadvantages, are not free from pitfalls, but at the same time provide opportunities. The most important thing for employees is to use the opportunities that a position in such a workplace gives, and skilfully advance their careers so that they move on in the direction they want to, together with people that respect their work, and thus they do not perceive work as the necessary evil.