Economic determinants of social justice in Poland. Article No. 2 of The Constitution
of The Republic of Poland (1997) states that Poland „shall be a democratic
state ruled by law and implementing the principles of social justice”. Social justice
is one of the principles of government and, according to lawyers, does not constitute
grounds for subjective claims. Contemporary understanding of the Ulpian
idea of justice (suum cuique): giving everyone his due, derives from the conception
of distributive justice by J. Rawls, which is based on proportional equality. This
paper discusses the levels of four social justice indicators that Poland now deals
with: income inequality, tax system, unemployment and poverty. The structure of
the socio-economic system in Poland, which was founded and established during
a period of transition, (presented in paper by statistical data and international
comparisons) does not support the conclusion that Poland indeed fully embodies
the principles of social justice.