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| 1981, Jan. 31 |
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| The government agreed to the demands of striking Solidarity for a 41.5-hour, five-day workweek and the publication of a Solidarity-sponsored daily newspaper and its nationwide distribution. | 1 |
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| Feb. 9 |
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| Gen. Wojciech Jaruzelski replaced Pinkowski as prime minister. | 2 |
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| Feb. 12 |
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| Solidarity expressed a willingness to comply with Jaruzelski's request for “3 months of honest work, 90 days of calm, to put some order into the economy.” | 3 |
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| Feb. 14 |
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| Solidarity began negotiations with the government but reached no agreement. In the summer, strikes continued throughout Poland, as did negotiations between the union and the government, and between the Polish government and the Warsaw Pact leadership. | 4 |
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| April 17 |
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| The government agreed to allow farmers to form independent trade unions. | 5 |
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| April 27 |
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| The Polish government narrowly averted bankruptcy when Western nations made new arrangements for its repayment of their loans. | 6 |
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| July 23 |
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| The government announced food price hikes and cuts in rations. Protests led to a general strike on Aug. 5. | 7 |
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| Aug. 30 |
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| The price of bread tripled. | 8 |
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| Sept. 5–10 |
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| Solidarity held its first national meeting in Gdansk. The union had gained more than 9 million members. | 9 |
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| Sept. 17 |
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| The Soviet Union issued an ultimatum against Solidarity. | 10 |
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| Oct. 18 |
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| Jaruzelski became the leader of Poland's Communist Party, replacing S. Kania. | 11 |
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| Nov. 10 |
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| Poland applied for membership in the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Its acceptance was delayed until June 1986 because of the imposition of martial law. | 12 |
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