1. Social
Insurance
Institution (ZUS)

2. Social insurance
provides money to people who cannot work, due to, among others, poor health or old age.
ZUS pays either short-term or lifelong benefits. 2

3. Social Insurance in Europe
The idea of social insurance emerged at the end of the 19th century in Germany.
It was the period of the industrial revolution in Europe. The author of the changes was the Chancellor of the Second Reich Otto von Bismarck.
The years were the times of experiment and exploration in social policy, focusing on the search for the best methods of state interference in social affairs. Otto von Bismarck, the Chancellor of the Second Reich, has played an important role in shaping the contemporary social policy. He introduced three types of compulsory insurance:
sickness insurance (1883),
accidents insurance (1884),
old age and disability insurance (1889).
The German laws triggered the search for the best ways to solve social problems by other European countries. Many of these countries have considered the German solutions worth following. 3 3

4. Polish social insurance system –
28 March 1933
the Social Insurance Act, which consolidated the social security system in Poland
24 October 1934
the regulation of the President of the Republic of Poland, Ignacy Mościcki, which established the Social Insurance Institution
When Poland regained its independence, it was necessary to create a unified and modern social insurance system. In the reborn country, the legislation of the partitioning powers was in force. The unification of the insurance system in the Second Polish Republic lasted for several years.
The Social Insurance Act, adopted on 28 March 1933, has consolidated the social insurance. This is why it is referred to as the Consolidating Act.
It covered all types of social insurance:
sickness and maternity,
in the event of an insured person's incapacity for work or in the event of death,
work accident and occupational disease insurance, "all causes" insurance,
old-age insurance for blue-collar and white-collar workers.
By the Ordinance of the President of the Republic of Poland of 24 October 1934 on the amendment of the Social Insurance Act five separate institutions merged into one (under the name Social Insurance Institution – ZUS, based in Warsaw):
Social Insurance Chamber,
Sickness Insurance Institution,
Accident Insurance Institution,
Non-Manual Workers' Insurance Institution,
Manual Workers' Insurance Institution.
ZUS managed five insurance funds whicht were administratively connected but financially separated. 4

5. ZUS:
grants and pays, among others: old-age pensions, sickness and maternity allowances;
collects and keeps a record of contributions to: Social Insurance Fund, Labour Fund, Fund of Guaranteed Employee Benefits, Bridging Old-Age Pensions Fund;
collects health insurance contributions and transfers them to the National Health Fund;
maintains individual accounts of the insured and accounts of contribution payers (entrepreneurs);
carries out tasks in the field of disability and accident prevention.
Old-age pension: a benefit for a person who can no longer work due to his age and who paid contributions during his professional performance.
Pension: a benefit for:
a person who is incapable of work (disability pension),
for a family member (including a child) after the death of an insured person, an old-age pensioner or a pensioner (survivor's pension),
for a person whose incapacity for work appeared before completing:
18 years of age – during school or university education
25 years of age – during doctoral studies or scientific aspirant (social pension).
Sickness allowance: a benefit for a person who cannot work because he/she is sick, paid on the basis of a doctor's certificate.
Maternity allowance: a benefit for a person who cannot work because he or she looks after a new-born or adopted child.
Care allowance: a benefit for a person who cannot work because he or she looks after a sick member of his/her close family.
Funeral grant: a benefit for a person who covered the costs of a funeral.
Labour Fund (FP): labour offices manage its resources and finance: unemployment benefits, intervention works, public works, trainings for the unemployed.
Fund of Guaranteed Employee Benefits (Fundusz Gwarantowanych Świadczeń Pracowniczych FGŚP): provides, among others, payment of outstanding remuneration to employees whose employer is insolvent.
Bridging Old-Age Pension Fund (FEP): bridging old-age pensions.
National Health Fund (Narodowy Fundusz Zdrowia NFZ): finances health services and reimburses medicines.
Individual account of the insured person: account in which ZUS records all contributions paid for the insured.
Contribution payer's account: account in which ZUS records all contributions paid by an entrepreneur and information about his employees.
Social Insurance Institution performs tasks in the field of:
disability prevention, including referring to medical rehabilitation (for example the insured who have problems with the vocal organs)
accident prevention, including: spreading knowledge about the risks that accidents at work and occupational diseases entail and how to counteract them; co-finances those activities of contribution payers which are supposed to prevent accidents at work and occupational diseases, and maintain the ability to work throughout the whole period of employees' professional activity.

6. Participants of the universal social insurance system:
CONTRIBUTION PAYERS
INSURED PERSONS
CLAIMANTS
over 24 million employees, contractors and others
over 7,3 million
pensioners
on average 1,8 million
people who receive benefits, for example: sickness, maternity or care allowances
about 2,5 million
employers and entrepreneurs
There are also other social security systems in Poland, which cover: farmers (Agricultural Social Insurance Fund - Kasa Rolniczego Ubezpieczenia Społecznego KRUS), uniformed services, prosecutors and judges. ZUS does not insure them. 6

7. ZUS manages the SOCIAL INSURANCE FUND (FUS)
Social insurance contributions go to the special fund – Social Insurance Fund (FUS), which is managed by ZUS. It is from FUS that benefits are paid.
ZUS manages the SOCIAL INSURANCE FUND (FUS)
NOTE:
ZUS ≠ FUS
Social Insurance Fund (Fundusz Ubezpieczeń Społecznych FUS) – its budget includes social security contributions and subsidies from the state budget. The Social Insurance Fund may also take out loans. FUS is managed by ZUS. ZUS pays out: old-age pensions, disability pensions, sickness, care and maternity allowances.
Why is the difference between ZUS and FUS so important? Because ZUS is only an institution that the Polish state has set up to collect contributions to the Social Insurance Fund and to pay benefits. ZUS is an institution that implements state policy in the field of social insurance.

8. The amount of contributions and the rules for calculating benefits are determined by the parliament.

9. Legal basis

10. Expenditure of the Social Insurance Fund (plan for 2018)
is at the level of 59%
of the state’s budget expenditure
EXPENDITURE
in 2018 r.
State budget
PLN billion
FUS resources
PLN 233 billion

11. ZUS does not create the law nor establishes
rules governing the social insurance system, including the old-age pension system.
What does it mean?
ZUS is obliged to correctly calculate and pay these benefits
ZUS does not have
any impact on the level of granted benefits
but
Here we may use the pupils' knowledge acquired during the Civic Education Classes (Wiedza o społeczeństwie, WOS) on the legislative power.
ZUS is obliged to collect
and keep a record of contributions
ZUS does not have
any impact on the level of social security contributions
but