August 31, 2025
In this jubilee year, 2025, we mark the 45th anniversary of the founding of the Independent Self-Governing Trade Union “Solidarność” (Solidarity) — one of the most important social movements in Polish history and on August 31 commemorate the signing of the August Agreements and the birth of the movement.
It is a perfect opportunity not only to reflect on the struggle for freedom, workers’ rights, and human dignity, but also to nurture the sense of community that has grown out of these values. Across the country, Poles will be celebrating 45th anniversary to honor this milestone with the dignity it deserves, because Solidarity is not just history — it’s people. It’s relationships, support, and collective action.
Solidarność holds a unique and historic place as the first independent, legal trade union in the communist bloc, free from government control. Founded in August 1980, it quickly became a mass movement, with nearly 10 million members at its peak—about 80% of Poland’s state-employed workforce—making it not only the largest social movement in Polish history but also one of the largest trade unions in the world at that time.
The wave of strikes in August 1980 led to the creation of NSZZ “Solidarność”. The signing of the agreement in Gdańsk on August 31, 1980, between the government commission and the Inter-Enterprise Strike Committee, and the subsequent formation of Solidarity, became the catalyst for the changes of 1989 — the fall of communism and the end of the Yalta system.
On September 17, 1980, representatives of founding inter-enterprise committees adopted a statute that established the Independent Self-Governing Trade Union “Solidarność” as a single, nationwide union with a regional structure. Lech Wałęsa became the chairman of the National Coordinating Commission, joined by Andrzej Gwiazda. Marian Jurczyk was appointed chairman of the Western Pomerania Region.
On November 10, 1980, the Supreme Court officially registered NSZZ “Solidarność.” The union soon had nearly 10 million members. Union organizations were formed in virtually all enterprises and institutions, with the exception of the Polish Army and the Citizens’ Militia, where the government did not allow union branches to be established.
