November-December. In many Polish industrial plants workers’ councils are formed as separate and independent representations of the plants’ crews. The action is initiated by the workers of the FSO car factory in the Żerań district of Warsaw.

Maria Dąbrowska (writer):

   Leszek has information about strange developments that have taken place at the University, the Polytechnic and the car factory in Żerań. [Wiktor] Kłosiewicz (head of the Trade Unions and an exceptionally hateful figure) visited the factory. He had the impudence to arrive in a luxurious Cadillac. The workers immediately broke the car’s windows, punctured the tyres and, booing, put him back in the car and pushed the vehicle out of the factory’s gate. An obituary immediately appeared on the University’s walls: “Wiktor Kłosiewicz died a political death on such and such day.”

Lechosław Goździk (workers’ leader, First Secretary of PZPR’s Factory Committee at FSO in Żerań):

   Everything that we wanted was defined in our slogans. The most important goal was Poland’s sovereignty. Another important thing was that we wanted to have a say in matters pertaining to our enterprises, which was why the workers’ councils were formed.

   After the Eighth Plenary Meeting [of the Central Committee of the Polish United Workers’ Party] the councils were springing up throughout Poland like mushrooms after the rain. Telephones were ringing incessantly and one delegation after another was arriving in FSO – we were not able to answer all the questions from people seeking information. [...] Besides, the authorities were not interested in the propagation of workers’ councils. They were afraid of the workers’ councils and of the possible results of elections to the councils. The authorities feared that party organizations in enterprises would lose their position and play second fiddle. [...] There were reasons to believe that we would become the real decision-makers.