• Sweden edition
Business & Money

Pole loses discrimination fight against Swedish zoo

Published: 21 Jan 13 11:39 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/45732/20130121/

A Polish employee who took a Swedish zoo to court for discrimination has lost his case as the district court ruled on Monday that he had reported the alleged crimes too late.

Marcin Wilk, 26, claimed that Polish and Bulgarian employees at the zoo on Öland island received lower wages and were ill-treated during his stint there in 2011.

He claimed that the zoo was run like an "old-fashioned feudal system," with a strict top-down structure.

In a recording of his dismissal, played up in court in December 2012, a manager is heard screaming at Wilk:

"You think you're better than others. Take your things and go to hell. You're behaving like a damn monkey."

Wilk claimed that he and other Poles worked 10-hour days without a weekend or time off while the zoo's Swedish staff worked a regular 40-hour week.

While Swedes were paid 14,000 kronor ($2,160) per month, the Polish workers got 6,800 kronor plus room and board, he said.

"I was discriminated on the basis of my nationality. But everyone who works with discrimination issues knows that it is hard to prove. Discrimination is hidden," Wilk told the Barometern newspaper.

Wilk was asking for 1 million kronor in damages, but now that the district court has ruled that the alleged crimes had passed the statute of limitation, he will be obliged to pay the zoo's legal bills.

TT/The Local/at
Follow The Local on Twitter

What do you think? Leave your comment below.

Your comments about this article:

The comments below have not been moderated in advance and are not produced by The Local unless clearly stated. Readers are responsible for the content of their own comments. Comments that breach our terms and conditions will be removed.

14:27 January 21, 2013 by EP
Too late??? It happened in 2011 and he submitted it in 2012? That's hardly late and perhaps it wasn't his fault, since things move at a snail's pace anyway in Sweden. Wonder if he forgot to take a number to queue up at first ....
15:16 January 21, 2013 by newsjerseyballs
I worked with a bunch of these Polish fellas back at the chemical plant in Hoboken. They didn't work for nothing. Lazy bums. Finally one day the boss takes one of them in the coffee break and gives him a good whipping right there in front of the rest of them. Never seen nothing like it. They were all illegal so what could they do. Nothin. Next thng you know the rest of them are working there balls off. So I don't blame the super at the zoo. Sometimes you gotta give these guys a good kick in the butt or a good yelling at to get them workin.
16:22 January 21, 2013 by EP
@newjesreyballs ...

You sure these weren't lazy Swedes having a fika at your plant in Hoboken?
18:29 January 21, 2013 by k2kats
EP: I share your skepticism. If the only issue was statute of limitations, why didn't anyone alert this poor fellow when he went to court?

newjesreyballs: Suggest exercising a bit of caution when slinging about stereotypes, especially if you don't want them thrown back at you.
20:10 January 21, 2013 by mafketis
"You're behaving like a damn monkey"

Too bad he lost, did they at least toss him some peanuts in consolation?
20:17 January 21, 2013 by Reason and Realism
6,800 plus room and board (the latter two items being implicitly tax free) can in some cases be considered equal or superior compensation to 14,000 SEK gross salary, so the question then is whether the weekend work can be deemed excessive or not.

Given the fact that the recording of the dimissal exists, I am tempted to believe that this recording may have been arranged by the one who was dismissed, and who may have behaved on the day of dismissial in a way to illicit exceptional anger on the part of the manager doing the dimissing. One would do this if one was planning to blackmail the zoo for a million kronor, for example.

Agree that he should have been informed that his complaint was too late, but is is not impossible that the judge pulled out this 'complaint-was-too-late' technicality if he/she suspected that this was a blackmail attempt, and the judge felt he/she could do nothing else to protect the zoo from that blackmail.
11:56 January 22, 2013 by Frobobbles
Comment removed by The Local for breach of our terms.
ADD YOUR COMMENT   (YOU MUST LOG IN OR REGISTER TO MAKE A COMMENT)
Business & Money headlines
Riksbank unveils new board members

Riksbank unveils new board members

Sweden's central bank has appointed two new board members plucked from banking and academia to replace two outgoing members, one of whom was an outspoken critic of the Riksbank's commitment to the government's inflation goal. READ () »

350 jobs lost as Ericsson shuts Swedish factory

350 jobs lost as Ericsson shuts Swedish factory

Swedish telecom giant Ericsson has buckled under the pressure of European competition and will turn off the switch on a cable production plant in Sweden, leaving 350 employees without jobs. READ () »

Sweden has 'lower tax burden' than Senegal

Sweden has 'lower tax burden' than Senegal

While Sweden has a reputation for having one of the most painful tax bills in the world, a new report ranks Sweden 20th when comparing the tax burden on salaries when social security payments and salary brackets are taken into account. READ () »

Ericsson probed over suspected bribes

Ericsson probed over suspected bribes

Swedish telecom equipment maker Ericsson is suspected of having bribed ministers in Romania in connection with being awarded a contract for the country's emergency number and is now under investigation in the United States. READ () »

Warning over 'long-term' Swedish export slump

Warning over 'long-term' Swedish export slump

Sweden's largest business confederation has gone out guns blazing, criticizing politicians for not facing up to the challenges of "a lost year for Swedish exports" in 2012. READ () »

'Lean hospital a sign of Swedish welfare reform'

'Lean hospital a sign of Swedish welfare reform'

A Stockholm hospital saved from closure by private health care providers has been hailed by the Economist as one of modern's Sweden public-private success stories. READ () »

H&M mulls production in South America and Africa

H&M mulls production in South America and Africa

Swedish clothing giant H&M is looking into the possibility of sourcing its production to South America, Central America, and even Africa, chief executive Karl-Johan Persson said on Monday. READ () »

Nord Stream plans new gas pipelines

Nord Stream plans new gas pipelines

Gas pipeline firm Nord Stream will hold an information meeting on the Baltic island of Gotland on Monday to introduce a proposal to extend its controversial gas pipeline project. READ () »

'Sweden next in line for housing market crash'

'Sweden next in line for housing market crash'

Sweden tops a list of countries that risk suffering a housing market crash, Germany's Commerzbank has warned, citing the slackening off of Swedish property prices as a harbinger of a potential downswing. READ () »

Solna voted best place to live in Sweden

Solna voted best place to live in Sweden

Solna, a suburb just north of Stockholm, is the best place to live in Sweden, according to a new ranking published on Friday by Swedish news magazine Fokus. READ () »

More Business & Money

Find a new job in Sweden now
23/05 Java Developer (Turku, Finland)
Academic Work
Turku
23/05 Product Manager
Safemind AB
Stockholm
22/05 Accountant to Bank of China
Sjr Ab
Stockholm
22/05 Accountant to Bank of China
SJR AB
Stockholm, STHM
22/05 Accounting Manager
Michael Page
Göteborg
22/05 Accounting Manager
Michael Page
Göteborg, VTG
22/05 Analyse Engineer - Infotainment Platform
Volvo
Göteborg
22/05 Analyse Engineer - Infotainment Platform
Volvo Car Corporation
Göteborg, VTG
22/05 Application Owner AX
Net Entertainment NE AB
Stockholm
22/05 Architectural Engineer #8409
Aker Advantage
Stockholm

ALL JOBS »


 
Latest Business & Money news from Germany
Counseling in English
Individuals & Couples - Stockholm Beth Rogerson PhD - Clinical, Marriage & Family Therapist
Click or call 08-5580 1266 now
Trade binary options
Create an account with Banc De Binary, the world’s most reputable binary options firm, and start cashing in today! You can start by practicing with our free $50,000 demo account.
www.bbinary.com
Therapy in English
Expat counsellor & talk therapist offers counselling for stress, relationship issues, sexuality, culture adjustment & life coaching. Private & confidential. Stockholm or Skype. Contact me today! 08-559 22 636 or
CLICK HERE
Holiday Luxury Villa in Portugal
Casa Birgitta in Algarve, Portugal. Reduced price in best location. Private estate on white sand beach. All amenities included. Book here today! edward_george1@hotmail.com
The Local's new Marketplace
Find products and services that are specifically focused on English speakers living in Sweden!
FULL DETAILS