Purpose – With pay transparency (PT) as an emerging trend in organizations around the world and the European Union promoting open pay regulations, PT is of increasing interest to scientists, managers and policymakers. However, it is still unclear what people think about PT and what theoretical perspectives might explain people’s views on transparent pay. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to explore and systematize opinions about PT and to propose theoretical frameworks to understand different reactions to it.
Design/methodology/approach – Qualitative reflexive thematic analysis of the Internet debate that emerged in Poland in 2019 in response to the proposition of new law regulations aimed to improve PT by introducing obligatory pay ranges in job offers.
Findings – The author’s analysis revealed a set of 41 specific and often opposite opinions about PT, which allow for the systematization of hopes and concerns related to PT around the 7 favorable and 6 unfavorable higher-order themes.
Social implications – The author’s results might inform policymakers and managers about the possible risks and benefits of PT implementation. Revealed opposite opinions about PT raise awareness that PT policies, while solving some social problems, might simultaneously create others.
Originality/value – The author provides new insights into opinions that people hold about transparent pay based on real-world data. The author suggests theoretical perspectives for understanding and predicting reactions to PT, such as Hobfoll’s Conservation of Resources Theory and Adam`s Equity Theory. Based on this, the authors propose that opposite opinions about PT might be explained by (a) perceived pay dispersion fairness and (b) perceived PT costs-benefits ratio.

Purpose – The article aims to determine the implementation extent of the regulations around appointment and characteristics of audit committees and regulations concerning disclosure of information about the audit committee in Polish practice.
Design/methodology/approach – The author analyzed the informative content of management reports and corporate governance statements. The survey covered all domestic companies listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange in the years from 2017 to 2021.
Findings – The new guidelines resulting from hard law had a significant impact on the corporate governance on the Polish capital market. According to the research results, over the analyzed years, the share of companies listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, which appointed an audit committee within the supervisory board, clearly increased. Moreover, the research found that in the period under study, not all companies fulfilled the obligation to disclose information about the audit committee resulting from hard law. In particular, this applies to disclosures on how the members of the audit committee acquired competencies in the area of accounting.
Practical implications – The article concerns the operation of the audit committee in public companies listed on the Polish capital market.The study can serve as a reference point for further research on corporate governance. The results of the research may be an indication for those who create legal solutions in the area of corporate governance.
Originality/value – This is the first such comprehensive study on the characteristics of the audit committee and disclosures about the audit committee resulting from the introduction of hard law in this area.

Purpose: The main aim of the study is the analysis of the awareness of competency needs in businesses in relation to the development of Industry 4.0 and the possibility of meeting those needs within business cooperation networks.

Methodology: We formed a model of competency needs for companies operating as part of Industry 4.0 in Poland, considering the needs of managers and other staff members. The model was then employed in empirical studies. The pilot empirical study was conducted using two methods: a quantitative CAWI method, which covered 81 companies from the metal processing and machine industry in Podlaskie Voivodship, and a qualitative IDI on a sample of 25 organizations.

Findings: Manufacturing companies are not fully aware of the competency needs related to Industry 4.0, covered by the established model. Moreover, we found that the most strongly felt competency needs – both by managers and other employees – may not be met within the business cooperation network. In order to satisfy these needs, partners must be found outside the studied network. The business cooperation network that we studied may only satisfy the less noticeable competency needs.

Implications: The developed competency model should be studied and further verified, including testing with a larger sample of companies, specifying the behavioral competency gaps related to Industry 4.0, their filling in using formal education systems, lifelong education, internships, and apprenticeships. The need for further research is dictated by the intensity of processes occurring within the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Value: The pilot nature of the study and its limited sample do not undermine its contribution to the body of knowledge as it confirms that the competencies of managers and other staff members are one of the key determinants of successful implementation of the Industry 4.0 concept in Poland.

Purpose: Digitalisation of healthcare in Poland which covers e-prescriptions, e-referrals, and shar ing electronic medical records (EMR) on the P1 platform3 is supposed to be fully completed and implemented from 1 January 2021. The success of that implementation is strictly connected to the level of digital skills of both healthcare providers and healthcare service users. The purpose of the present paper is to indicate potential problems which may arise from the digitalisation of healthcare in social groups which are not adapted to using information and communication technologies (ICT) in their day-to-day lives, especially in case of the elderly.

Methodology: In order to indicate a potentially high level of digital exclusion in society, secondary data collected by Eurostat, Statistics Poland and CBOS4 were used. Problems in the healthcare sector, including those resulting from the digitalisation implemented in Poland, were presented against the backdrop of the changing law which applies here.

Findings: The introduction of digital solutions in the healthcare sector in Poland, including EMR, e-referrals, and e-prescriptions, was postponed numerous times, which can indicate the lack of the proper preparation of providers for a digital revolution. However, a potentially greater problem may lie with healthcare service users, especially considering the fact that such services are used mostly by the elderly. The phenomenon of digital exclusion, generally associated with the lack of skills neces sary for using ICT, is frequently observed particularly among senior citizens. It can lead to social isolation which is a risk factor that influences the health of senior citizens and the quality of their lives.

Originality/value: Some of the issues resulting from the adopted solutions and the legislation govern ing healthcare in Poland, including the digitalisation of said healthcare, and proposals for amend ments in this regard were provided in this interdisciplinary paper. It seems that those solutions could be used to reduce the threats of the digital exclusion of a significant part of Polish society, particularly in the group of seniors.

Purpose: The article analyzes the possible methods of public debt management, which not only aim to meet regulatory requirements but also obtain a market premium in the form of an optimal level of the yield on government bond yields that will be profitable for the issuer. The study analyzes the situation in the public finance sector in the countries that form the Visegrád Group (V4). The authors evaluate the main regulatory requirements of EU law in the area of numerical fiscal rules and their impact on the yield on basic securities such as ten-year government bonds, which directly influences the cost of servicing long-term public debt.

Methodology: The study uses desk research method for theoretical reasoning to verify the research hypothesis. The study seeks to answer the question of whether the application of national and EU fiscal rules in V4 budgetary frameworks contributes to lower yields on ten-year bonds and thereby reduces the cost of public debt. The authors utilize time series and cause-effect analysis as well as quantitative research for the systematization of statistical information and regression analysis for the examination of statistical dependencies.

Findings: The basic parameters subject to financial assessment within the fiscal rules index are (1) the deficit of public finance sector and (2) public debt with its servicing costs. In 2005–2016, the ratio of the public finance sector deficit to GDP was shaped in such a way that most V4 countries required the institution of excessive deficit procedures and further disciplinary regulations. The assessment of the situation in the public finance sector in the area of budget deficit and public debt does not translate into the yield on government bonds of non-Eurozone countries. Model-based testing indicates that the financial markets – when deciding to evaluate or purchase government bonds of non-Eurozone countries – failed to acknowledge the implementation of fiscal rules in these countries and its possible effects.

Originality: The study focuses on a unique comprehensive analysis of national fiscal rules employed in individual V4 countries and their impact on the yield on government bonds throughout the entire EU membership of the V4. What holds the greatest cognitive value in this article is the answer to the question of whether Eurozone membership impacts the valuation of a country’s public debt.

Purpose: To analyse the impact of the Polish fiscal regime on the general revenue of the country, and specifically to establish whether the cumulative tax burden borne by Polish households is progressive or regressive.

Methodology: On the basis of Eurostat and OECD data, the author has analysed fiscal regimes in EU Member States and in OECD countries. The tax burden of households within different income groups has also been examined pursuant to applicable fiscal laws and data pertaining to the revenue and expenditure of households published by the Central Statistical Office (CSO).

Conclusions: The fiscal regime in Poland is regressive; that is, the relative fiscal burden decreases as the taxpayer’s income increases.
Research Implications: The article contributes to the on-going discussion on social cohesion, in particular with respect to economic policy instruments aimed at the redistribution of income within the economy.

Originality: The author presents an analysis of data pertaining to fiscal policies in EU Member States and OECD countries and assesses the impact of the legal environment (fiscal regime and social security system) in Poland on income distribution within the economy. The impact of the total tax burden (direct and indirect taxes, social security contributions) on the economic situation of households from different income groups has been calculated using an original formula.

Purpose: The fundamental aim of this article is to verify an assumption according to which the
proper Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) is a key factor in the rationality of law. Rational law
is a law which is effective and able to realize and achieve social, economic and environmental aims
determined and established by the lawmaker.

Methodology: The scope of this paper – which determines its structure – encompasses the definition
of RIA, including its specific (but non-legal) forms such as benchmarking and evaluation. As
far as we are concerned, these methods can provide – as a kind of Regulatory Impact Assessment
– a significant tool for measuring the rationality of regulations. Furthermore, the usefulness of
benchmarking and evaluation has been recognised by representatives of jurisprudence. We will
also explain the concept and the assumptions of the rationality of law on the grounds and in the
light of the case law of the Polish Constitutional Tribunal and the Supreme Administrative Court.
This should allow to countercheck the main thesis of this paper. The methodology encompasses
primary legal methods such as literature, case law and legislation analysis.

Findings: An indispensable condition of the rationality of law is actual elimination of irrational
regulations which were not subjected to the Regulatory Impact Assessment.
Practical implications: Although RIA is a problematic issue (in terms of its practical application),
it is necessary to carry it out in order to assure the rationality of law. A good and desirable complement
to Regulatory Impact Assessment are non-legal methods such as benchmarking and evaluation.

Originality: Originality and value of this survey lies in taking into account the case law of the
Polish Constitutional Tribunal and the Supreme Administrative Court. Additionally, this paper is
original in that it considers non-legal methods in the examination of the rationality of law.

Purpose: The paper discusses the validity of the thesis according to which Polish budgetary framework
in place in 2011 required only minor adjustments in order to be consistent with the principles
set forth in the EU Council Directive on requirements for budgetary frameworks of Member States
adopted in November 2011. Basic elements of the budgetary framework laid down in the Directive
had already been provided for in Polish law.

Methodology: A comparative analysis of the provisions of the Directive with relevant acts of Polish
legislation, including the Public Finance Act, was carried out. The author outlines the Polish
budgetary framework before 2011 and the most important adjustments introduced by the end of
2013 on the basis of the budgetary framework structure set forth in the Directive.

Findings: The assessment of the convergence of provisions encompassed definitions, accounting,
statistics, forecasts, numerical fiscal rules, medium-term budgetary frameworks, transparency and
consistency. Its results demonstrate that Polish regulations complied with the provisions of the
Directive. In order to confirm their correctness, an assessment of the practical application of recent
adjustments, which entered into force in 2014, must be carried out.

Constraints to research: The analysis addresses the main concepts and their most important
characteristics, and therefore a synthetic approach to the subject required omitting a number of
specific issues.

Originality: The paper analyses the convergence of the Polish budgetary framework in 2011 and
its subsequent adjustments to the provisions of the Directive of the EU Council requiring Member
States to amend their legislation by the end of 2013.

Purpose: The article introduces a concept of the economic imagination, describes economic public attitudes and discusses the character of the contemporary economic imagination of Poles.

Methodology: Representative survey conducted on the stratifi ed random sample of 1022 adult respondents by means of CAPI (computer assisted personal interview). Statistical analysis of data.

Findings: The features perceived by public as economically benefi cial to the entire economy, particular enterprises and individuals have been ranked by the representative survey and statistically grouped into more general clusters. Those considered as good for the economy are grouped into such factors as “investment and competition”, “statism (etatism)” and “progressive taxation”. The features considered as benefi cial for the enterprises are grouped into “human, social and economic capital”, “law obedience and good social relations” and “limited free market”. Personal characteristics perceived as benefi cial for individual’s economic success are grouped into “honesty, perseverance and good social relations”, “skills and diligence” and “nepotism and instrumentalism”. Intensity as well as determinants of such general value loaded convictions, and their impact on acceptance of democracy have been revealed as well.

Implications: Economic imagination has to be analysed as an important factor of socio-economic system’s legitimization.

Originality: Distinction and empirical defi nition of economic attitudinal syndromes at three different levels: macro-economic, enterprise and individual constitute a novelty in socio-economic research. Discussion of their determinants and wider implications constitute a new contribution to the theory of social legitimization.

Purpose: The aim of the article is to present a problem of long hours in law fi rms from insiders’ perspective.

Methodology: Presented research was based on qualitative methodology. More than twenty unstructured interviews have been conducted with lawyers, the Harvard LLM graduates.

Findings: The research material shows that lawyers have no sense of agency to control their work time. All respondents reported that their work day was usually longer than standard eight hours. This element is perceived as a standard, inseparable part of work in a law fi rm. Long hours become an important element of lawyers professional identity. Despite the fact that long hours are perceived as disturbing respondents do not considers themselves in power to make a change.

Originality: Article presents a unique insiders’ perspective on the phenomenon under study. This approach, which is new in the literature, allowed us to identify the lack of the sense of agency as a crucial element of the problem of long hours in law firms.

Purpose: This study examines the determinants of ex-ante state capture in Poland.
Methodology: In order to establish the determinants of ex-ante state capture a logistic regression is estimated.

Findings: The study shows that in Poland the majority of legal acts were passed with the aim to satisfy the interest of particular groups. Furthermore, the regression analysis shows that the likelihood of state capture increases during the period of higher economic growth and local elections. The likelihood of state capture, however, declines during presidential elections. The results we attribute to different interests of political parties in the period of local and presidential elections. Finally, we fi nd that the state capture increased over the years in Poland. Additionally, we show that the EU accession did not prevent state capture in Poland. In contrast, the financial crisis of 2007 resulted in a wake-up effect and the likelihood of state capture declined in Poland.

Research limitations: In the study we employ proxies for state capture, yet we assume that corruption is a wide spread phenomenon in Poland. However, due to its nature corruption is very diffi cult to assess and measure.

Originality: The study uses a unique dataset on ex-ante state capture that was identifi ed in the legal acts that have been passed in the period 1990–2011 in Poland.

Purpose: The paper presents a review of the latest research on executive compensation and indicates the main problems and weaknesses of the existing solutions as well as trends for the future.

Methodology: In the analysis executive compensation constitutes a crucial element of corporate governance. The analysis is based on a review of the latest studies and research on the effectiveness of executive compensation referring to its size, structure and disclosure.

Findings: The paper presents the latest fi ndings in the practice of executive compensation and it points to the extension of the period of time giving rise to the payment of cash bonuses, the introduction of a range of different indicators, based on which executives are evaluated, simplifying compensation packages, the implementation of deferred payments, the introduction of the “say on pay” rule and clawbacks.

Practical implications: The analysis points out the main weaknesses of executive compensation, which were particularly emphasized in research studies on companies affected by the financial crisis. The paper presents a wide range of suggested solutions that could be implemented in the fi eld of executive compensation in order to provide for a better alignment of the interests of executives with those of shareholders and for the increase in shareholder value.

Originality/value: The paper attempts to identify the most severe corporate governance problems with reference to executive compensation and to confront them with research results as well as the recently proposed and implemented reforms and recommendations.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is a discussion and in-depth analysis of the legal and organizational circumstances associated with the activities of Supervisory Boards in housing cooperatives.

Methodology: A critical analysis of the existing legislation, own analytical analysis of the source documents, supplemented by conclusions and observations formulated on the basis of a case study, for the preparation of which information has been used obtained from primary sources in the form of documents of the analyzed housing cooperative and information obtained through participant observation.

Findings: What has a decisive impact on the mechanisms of corporate governance in housing cooperatives are the direct behaviors of Supervisory Board members, as well as the lack of awareness and involvement of the residents, who do not want to actively participate in the life of the cooperative. A diagnosis is presented of the most important factors that influence the actual operations of the analyzed Supervisory Board. While the current
legal regulations make it possible to ensure effective and proper control as well as adequate supervision over the activities of cooperatives.

Originality: The paper enriches the theory of management sciences in terms of a wider perception of the term corporate governance in relation to other organizations than companies. The presented methodological approach that is the basis for a comprehensive and thorough inspection of the activities of the Management Board can be used in other cooperatives as well. In the literature on the subject no similar analysis, supported by the results of own analytical research, had been found.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to attempt a comprehensive evaluation of the legal regulations within the Polish tax system regarding taxation of clergymen revenues from pastoral services.

Methodology: Undertaking and accomplishing the purpose of this paper has been possible by analyzing the Polish literature on the subject as well as the relevant legal acts. For the purpose of this paper also empirical materials have been used, in the form of a report on the fi nances of the Catholic Church, the contents of which were used to formulate the conclusions de lege ferenda. The main research method used in the present study
was the legal dogmatic method, which involves an analysis of the applicable regulations within the Polish legal system in the fi eld of taxation of clergymen revenues from pastoral services. Additionally, the basic methods of statistical data presentation were used in the form of tables.

Findings: The applicable legal regulations within the Polish tax system regarding taxation of clergymen revenues obtained from performing their pastoral services require an urgent and comprehensive reform. For these are normative solutions that contradict the basic principles of taxation (especially the postulated for more than two centuries principles of equality and justice in taxation), which should form the basis for a properly determined object of taxation, and therefore they do not fulfi ll the by the legislature assigned functions.

Research implications: Presented ideas for changes in the currently in Poland adopted lump-sum taxation system of clergymen revenues could constitute a starting point for the developers of the tax reform for further discussion on the desirable directions of reform in the fi eld of personal income taxation in Poland.

Originality: In the paper the Author points out that in the ongoing public discussion on the optimal method of taxation of personal income relatively little attention is given to issues concerning the taxation of personal income obtained from pastoral services. Thus, the present study, summarizing the existing achievements of the Polish doctrine of fi nancial law in this fi eld, constitutes a voice in the discussion on this subject and at the same time puts forward concrete proposals for changes in the current legal regulation of taxation of the clergy, which could serve as an inspiration for the developers of the tax reform in Poland.