attorney Igor Bąkowski
Bakowski Law Firm, Warsaw, Poland
Working hours
The standard working hours cannot exceed 8 hours per day and 40 hours in a five-day working week (on average), in the adopted settlement period not exceeding 4 months.
Weekly working hours together with overtime should not exceed 48 hours on average within the adopted settlement period.
The working time system defines norms and framework of working time. It indicates how many hours a day and a week a given employee can work in a specific settlement period.
According to Polish Labour Code the working time system should be established by an employer in:
- Collective labour agreement (collective bargaining agreement),
- Work regulations,
- Employers’ ordinance.
Exceptionally, selected working time systems may be agreed in a particular employment agreement.
The most common working time systems in Poland are:
- Standard working time system;
- Equivalent working time system;
- Task oriented work time;
- Flexible working time system;
- Shortened week working time system;
- Weekend work system.
Standard working time system
This is the most common working time system used in Poland.
No special conditions are required to introduce this working time system.
In the standard working time system working time may not 8 eight hours per day, and on average 40 hours in an average five – day working week, in the adopted settlement period.
Equivalent working time system
The equivalent working time system gives the employer the opportunity to extend daily working time up to 12 hours within a settlement period not exceeding 1 month (it can be 3 months in particularly justified situations and 4 months in the case of work depending on a weather season or weather conditions).
In this system the extension of daily working time is balanced by shortening duration of work in some other days, or by granting days off.
The average weekly working hours may not exceed 40 hours.
Introduction of the equivalent working time system must be justified by the type of work or particular organization of the work.
In this working time system, work has to be performed in accordance with the working time schedule which must be prepared in advance and cover the whole settlement period.
Task-oriented work time
Task-oriented working system may be introduced in cases justified by:
- type of work;
- work organization;
- place of performing work.
The circumstances which may justify the introduction of a task-oriented work system are: flexibility in working time, flexibility in where the work is performed (workplace), limited supervision abilities of the employer, professional character of the work and independence in the performing duties.
Task-oriented time is often applied for managers, architects, IT experts, commercial advisors or couriers.
In a task-oriented time system the employer establishes tasks and time required to perform them in cooperation with the employee, taking into consideration the standard working time norms (8 hours a day and on average 40 hours in an average five – day working week).
Task-oriented time system – does not require the employer to keep a work time record.
Flexible working time system
Within a flexible working time system, the employer may determine different hours of starting work on certain days and establish a time range of starting and finishing work.
Within a flexible working time system, the employer may for example set that work starts between 7:00 and 9:00 and finishes between 15:00 and 17:00. Within such set range of hours, the employee (or the employer) may choose when to start and finish work.
This system may not infringe the statutory rest periods (11 hours of daily rest and 35 hours of weekly rest).
The flexible working time system may be introduced:
- individually for a particular employee at such employee’s written request
- if there are no trade unions – with employees’ representatives
- in there are trade unions – in a collective bargaining agreement or in a special agreement with trade unions.
Shortened week working time system
An employer may introduce a shortened week working time system upon employee’s written request.
Under that system, the employee may be allowed to perform work on less than 5 days a week, with a simultaneous extension of the daily schedule of working time to no more than 12 hours, within a calculation period not exceeding 1 month.
The average weekly working hours may not exceed 40 hours.
This working time system can be introduced in an employment agreement.
Weekend work system
At a written request of an employee, he may be covered by the working time system where work will be performed only on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.
The daily schedule of working time may be extended up to 12 hours, within a calculation period not exceeding 1 month.
Weekend working time system can be introduced in an employment agreement.
Overtime work
Overtime work is work performed in excess of:
- standard working hours, and
- extended daily working hours (based on the working time regime where such extension is permitted).
Overtime work is allowed only in the event of:
- need to carry out rescue operations for the protection of human life or health, or
- for the protection of property or the environment or for a need to repair a breakdown, or
- special needs of an employer.
Maximum overtime work limits
Daily overtime limit
Daily working time together with overtime may not exceed 13 hours (due to required 11 hours period of rest).
Weekly overtime limit
Weekly working time together with overtime may not exceed, on average, 48 hours within adopted settlement period.
Yearly overtime limit
The number of overtime hours due to special needs of employer may not exceed 150 hours in a calendar year, for any particular employee.
Collective labour agreement or work regulation may set out a different number of overtime hours allowed (maximum 416 hours).
Overtime remuneration / compensation
An employee is entitled to his regular remuneration for every hour of overtime work.
In addition, he is also entitled to additional allowance (compensation) for every hour of overtime work in the amount equal to:
- a) 50 % of the remuneration for overtime work on any working day, including weekends and public holidays, if according to the working time schedule these are normal working days.
- b) 100 % of the remuneration for overtime work:
- at night,
- on Sundays and holidays that are not employee’s normal working days according to the applicable working schedule,
- on a day off granted in exchange for performing work on Sunday or a holiday, in accordance with the applicable working schedule.
The allowance (compensation) equal to 100 % of the remuneration is also due for each hour of work in excess of average weekly working time standard in the adopted settlement period, unless the standard was exceeded as a result of overtime work for which an employee is entitled to the allowance referred to above.
Overtime time off in exchange of remuneration
Instead of payment of the allowance, the other admissible way of compensating for overtime work is granting to an employee an equivalent time off “in exchange”.
If the time off “in exchange” is requested by the employee, the time off must simply correspond to 100% of the number of hours worked overtime.
However, if the time off “in exchange” is granted by the decision initiated by the employer, the number of hours off must correspond to 150% of the number of hours worked overtime.
Employees which not allowed to work overtime
- Female employees during pregnancy – not allowed to work overtime or at night regardless of their consent;
- Juvenile employees (i. e. persons over 15 and under 18 years of age) – not allowed to work overtime or at night regardless of their consent;
- Employee employed on posts where maximum admissible concentrations and intensities of the harmful factors to health have been exceeded – not allowed to work overtime due to special needs of employer.
Employees which are not entitled to additional allowance for overtime
Managing employees (employees who manage the employing establishment on behalf of the employer and heads of separate organizational subunits of the organization) have no right to allowance for overtime.
However, employees who are heads of organizational subunits have the right to allowance for overtime work performed on Sundays and public holidays if they have not been given another rest-day in return.
Rest periods
There are two key rest periods: daily and weekly.
Daily rest period
Within each day an employee is entitled to at least 11 hours of uninterrupted rest.
Daily rest period is not applicable to employees managing the workplace on behalf of an employer. Such employees are entitled to an equivalent period of rest.
Weekly rest period
Each week an employee is entitled to a minimum 35-hour period of uninterrupted rest.
The weekly rest period must contain a Sunday. In case of approved work on Sunday, rest may be assigned to a day other than Sunday.
Weekly rest period of employees managing the workplace on behalf of an employer may consist of a smaller number of hours (not less than 24 hours).
Breaks from work during the day
There is a mandatory break in case of work above 6 hours on a day which is 15 minutes (these 15 minutes are included in the working time, not treated as time off from working time).
An employer may also introduce one break from work, in the maximum length of 1 hour (a “lunch break”), which is not counted into working time. Such break must be introduced in workplace regulations.
Work on holidays
Working on Weekends and on public holidays
Work on Saturdays
it is customary in Poland that Saturdays are days off work resulting from the five-day working week. However legally Saturdays are normal work days in Poland.
Most employers define working days as Monday to Friday (however it is also possible to include Saturday for example by defining working days from Tuesday to Saturday).
An employee who performed work on a day off resulting from average five-day working week rule, is entitled in exchange to another day off granted by the end of the calculation period at the time agreed upon with the employee.
Work on Sunday and on public holidays
Sundays as a rule are days off work in Poland.
From 2018 work in shops (trading units) on Sundays and public holidays is not allowed. As an exception each year there are some “Trading Sundays” on which work is permissible (for example before Christmas or Easter holidays).
Public holidays are considered as days off work.
Public holidays are listed in the non-working days act of 18 January 1951 which includes:
1 January – New Year’s Day
6 January – Epiphany
Easter Sunday
Easter Monday
1 May – Labour Day
3 May – Constitution Day
Pentecost Sunday (7th Sunday after Easter)
Corpus Christi (9th Thursday after Easter)
15 August – Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
1 November – All Saints’ Day
11 November – Independence Day
25 December – first day of Christmas
26 December – second day of Christmas
Unless stated otherwise in internal regulations of the employer, work on Sundays and on public holidays is considered to be work performed between 6 a.m. on the same day and 6 a.m. on the following day.
Work on Sundays and public holidays is permitted only under certain conditions provided in Polish Labour Code:
- in situations requiring a rescue operation in order to protect human life or health or property or environment or to remove a breakdown,
- in a continuous motion,
- in a shift work,
- in necessary repairs,
- in transport and communications,
- in fire and rescue services,
- guarding property or protecting individuals,
- in agriculture and breeding,
- in performing works necessary due to their social use and daily needs of the population (such as healthcare establishments, establishments providing services to the population),
- with respect to employees working under a working time system, where work is performed only on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays,
- transboundary telecommunication services.
Compensation and allowance for work on Sundays and public holidays
An employee who works on Sundays or on public holidays, must be compensated with another day off:
- in exchange for work on Sunday – within 6 calendar days preceding or following that Sunday,
- in exchange for work on holiday – within the calculation period.
If it is impossible to use a day off in exchange for working Sunday within 6 calendar days preceding or following Sunday an employee is entitled to a day off by the end of a calculation period. If such day off cannot be granted within that period, such employee is entitled to an allowance in the amount 100 % of the remuneration for each hour worked on Sunday.
Free Sundays in exchange
An employee working on Sunday is entitled to at least one free Sunday every four weeks. This does not apply to employees working under a working time system where work is performed only on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.
Leves from work
Leaves from work in Poland may be divided into paid and unpaid leaves.
Holiday leave
Holiday leave is a paid holiday, for which the employee has normal remuneration paid.
The scope of the holiday leave depends on general work seniority and amounts to 20 or 26 days per calendar year. The period based on which holiday entitlement is calculated includes the employee education (for example, graduation from university is treated as eight years’ employment so persons with higher education start straight with the 26 days yearly leave).
As a rule, employees gain the right to full holiday leave on 1st of January of a given calendar year, except for the situation of the first employment of an employee (first job in person’s life) when the right to a leave is acquired each month, proportionally to employment period.
Using holiday leave
Holiday leave should be used within the given calendar year and divided in a way that at least one part of the leave is used for 2 consecutive weeks. If it is not possible to use the whole leave during a given calendar year, the holiday leave must be granted to the employee no later than until the end of September of the following calendar year.
It is not legally possible to resign from the holiday leave or to lower its scope stated in the provisions of law.
Equivalent for unused holiday
Holiday leave should always be used in nature, it is not possible to pay out cash equivalent instead. There is an exception in case the employment is terminated and the employee has some unused holiday leave (from previous year or years or current year – proportionally to employment term) the employer is obliged to pay a cash equivalent for each day of the unused holidays. The rest of the holiday leave due for that calendar year must be used at the new employer, proportionally to the employment term at the new workplace in a given calendar year.
Leave on demand
Every employee is entitled to a leave on demand up to 4 days during the calendar year. Such leave was intended for unpredictable life circumstances; however, it is sometimes called the “day-after leave”.
This leave can be used in one go (4 days at one time) or individual days can be used at any time.
Such leave is part of the holiday leave (20 or 26 days) and the employee may use it only when he still has the right to holiday leave (he did not use all of the allowance).
The intention to use the leave on demand must be reported by the employee to the employer no later than on the day of its commencement (not after he used it). The employer may be notified in any form – it can be done by phone, e-mail, courier or another person.
The leave on demand should be granted to the employee within the period he indicated by the employee and the employer has no right to refuse to grant it.
Other types of paid leaves:
Maternity leave
The length of a maternity leave for a mother of a child amounts to:
- 20 weeks if 1 child is born during one delivery;
- 31 weeks if 2 children are born in one delivery;
- 33 weeks if 3 children are born in one delivery;
- 35 weeks if 4 children are born in one delivery;
- 37 weeks if 5 and more children are born in one delivery.
Part of the maternity leave may be taken 6 weeks prior to the expected date of birth.
The right to maternity leave is also granted to an employee who took a child for upbringing as a foster family or applied for the child’s adoption.
Maternity benefit
If the employee applies for maternity and parental leave (in one application) within 21 days after giving birth to the child – the maternity benefit must be paid out in the amount equal to 80% of salary for the entire year.
If the employee does not meet the above deadline for requesting maternity and parental leave – the maternity benefit is to be paid out in the amount equal to 100% of salary for the first 20 weeks, and 60% for the period of parental leave.
Paternity leave (for the father)
A father of a child as an employee is entitled to paternity leave amounting to 14 days, which can be divided into two equal parts.
The entitlement to paternity leave belongs exclusively to the father and it cannot be transferred to the child’s mother.
The paternity leave is a one-off entitlement and may be used until the child turns the age of 24 months.
In practice the 14 days of paternal leave is most usually used directly after the child is born.
Parental leave
After completing the maternity leave, the employee acquires the right to parental leave.
Its duration depends on the number of children born at one delivery and amounts to:
- 32 weeks if one child is born in one delivery,
- 34 weeks when more than one child is born in one delivery.
Parental benefit
In order to take advantage of parental leave the employee must submit an application to the employer within 21 days after giving birth to the child.
If the deadline is met – the employee will receive the benefit in the 80% of calculation basis throughout the entire period of maternity and parental leave.
If an employee does not meet the 21 days deadline, the maternity allowance will be paid in the amount of 100% of calculation basis for the period of maternity leave and then 60% of calculation basis for the period of the parental leave.
Occasional leave
Each employee is entitled to occasional leave in connection with important events in life. Occasional leave must be used on the day of an event or any day around that day.
The duration of the occasional leave depends on the type of event:
- own wedding – 2-day leave;
- birth of a child – 2-day leave;
- a child’s wedding – 1-day leave;
- death and funeral of a mother, father, stepmother, stepfather, spouse, child – 2-day leave;
- death and funeral of a brother, sister, grandfather, grandmother, father-in-law or other person who was dependent on the employee or under his direct care – 1-day leave.
Training leave
Training leave should be granted to an employee who raises his professional qualifications with the consent of the employer.
Training leave is granted for:
- 6 days – for preparation for high school ending exam (“matura”);
- 21 days – for preparation of diploma thesis and for the preparation to and participation in the diploma exam.
The employee retains the right to remuneration for the duration of the training leave.
Days of training leave do not reduce the holiday leave (they are independent benefits).
Leave for the purpose of job seeking
If the employer terminates the employment, the employee is entitled to a paid leave for the purpose of looking for a job.
The scope of job seeking leave depends on the length of the notice period and amounts to:
- 2 working days of leave – in case of 2 weeks or 1 month notice period;
- 3 working days of leave – in case of 3 months’ notice period.
Childcare leave
Each employee, regardless of gender, raising a child up to the age of 14, is entitled to 16 hours or 2 days per calendar year of paid childcare leave.
The parent, when submitting the first application for this leave, must declare whether she or he intends to use it in days or in hours.
Childcare leave is independent from annual holiday leave and it does not reduce it.
Childcare leave provides two additional days on top of the standard 20 or 26 days of annual holiday leave.
Sickness leave
For the period of an employee’s incapacity to work, the employee retains the right to the remuneration. The remuneration is due in amount of 100% or 80% of regular remuneration depending on the cause of the incapacity.
The employer is obliged to pay the remuneration for the first 33 days of incapacity in any given calendar year. If the incapacity lasts longer the employee is entitled to receive sickness benefit paid by social security institution (ZUS) for a period of up to 182 days.
Unpaid leaves
Unpaid leave at employee’s request
Pursuant to the Polish Labour Code an employer may grant an employee unpaid leave for any purpose. During unpaid leave the employment relationship does not cease, but is temporarily suspended.
Unpaid leave may be granted by the employer at the employee’s request. The employer is not obliged to accept employees’ request.
The duration of the unpaid leave may be freely agreed between the parties and can be extended or shortened.
The Labour Code provides that in case of unpaid leave longer than 3 months, the parties may agree that the employee may be requested to return from the leave to work for important reasons.
Unpaid leave is considered as a break in employment, as a result its duration is not included in the period of work on which the employee’s benefits depend, or in the period of work on which the entitlement to benefits from employee retirement benefits depend.
During unpaid leave, the employee loses the right to sickness insurance benefits.
Unpaid leave for the purpose of work for another employer
The employer may grant an unpaid leave for the employee to perform work for another employer for the period specified in the agreement between the employers (this may be called an employee leasing).
An employee exercising such leave remains party to two independent employment relationships. The employment relationship between the employee and the first employer continues, although the obligations of the parties are suspended for the duration of the unpaid leave. However, the period of such leave will be included in the period of work on which the employee rights in the first workplace depend.
Child raising leave
Child raising leave is granted to an employee for the purpose of looking after a minor child until the child reaches the age of 6. It can be granted after that age (up to the age of 18 years) if the child requires longer care due to a disability.
The duration of the child raising leave is up to 3 years. One parent can use a maximum of 35 months while the other parent should use at least 1 month of the leave.
Child raising leave may be granted in maximum 5 parts.
The duration of the child raising leave is included in the employment seniority which determines employee rights.
Trade unions and collective labour agreements
Trade unions are the basic form of representation of the rights of workers in Poland.
At a given employer there can also be other forms of workers’ representation such as work councils.
A trade union may be founded by a group of at least 10 workers who have the right to establish trade unions, and they decide, at their discretion, what persons (categories, groups, professions) will be members of the union.
The membership principles for trade unions and the principles for performing union functions are specified in the statutes and resolutions of their bodies.
An established trade union must be registered. Upon its registration, the trade union and its organizational units indicated in the statutes, acquire a legal personality.
Trade unions may form federations and confederations.
An employee can belong to more than one trade union.
Membership in a trade union is voluntary. Nobody can suffer negative consequences of his/her membership in a trade union.
Members of union authorities are protected against employment termination and are entitled to receive remuneration from the company for the time when they are performing their roles in the union.
From 2019 all persons performing paid work obtained the right to create and join trade unions. This now includes not only persons performing paid work within the meaning of the Labour Code but also other persons performing work for remuneration on a basis other than employment relationship (provided that they do not employ other persons to perform the work), irrespective of the actual basis of the employment. Such persons can perform work under civil law contracts or be natural persons who conduct a one-person economic activity (also referred to as self-employed persons). Volunteers, apprentices and other persons who perform unpaid work can now also join existing trade unions.
Role of the trade unions in employment relations
The Labor Code and the Act on trade unions regulate trade union rights in employment relations.
Trade unions represent both collective and individual workers’ rights and interests.
The rights and powers of a trade union include, in particular:
- concluding collective agreements and accords;
- agreeing on work regulations, principles of remuneration;
- representing individual employees and contractors in their relations with the employer (in particular giving an opinion or, in some cases, approval to the termination of an employee);
- influencing the content of regulations regarding the conditions for collective terminations (lay-offs);
- determining the rules for the use of funds allocated by the employer for social activities for the benefit of employees and their families (Company Social Benefits Fund); and
- controlling the safety of working conditions.
The trade union concludes a collective labour agreement on behalf of employees and defines the terms, which should be reflected in the content of the employment relation and other provisions, including those concerning mutual obligations of the parties to the agreement.
As regards individual employment-related matters, an employee may be represented by a trade union if he is a member of that union or if the union organisation of his choice agrees to defend his worker rights (such as consultations on planned terminations of employment contracts).
The employer is obligated to consult or inform the trade union about key decisions concerning its employees such as:
- the transfer of the workplace to another employer;
- intention to terminate an employment contract;
- setting the conditions of telework;
- agreeing on rules and procedures and taking actions within health and safety at work.
Trade unions also have the right to receive from the employer information necessary for the conduct of trade union activities, in particular concerning:
- work and pay conditions;
- the employer’s activities and economic situation in relation to employment, and projected changes in this respect;
- the state, structure and anticipated changes in headcount, and measures to maintain employment levels; and
- activities that may cause significant changes to the organization of work or the basis of employment.
In practice, some of the trade union’s powers overlap with those of the works council.
Collective bargaining agreements
Collective bargaining agreements are concluded between employers and trade unions, at the initiative of either party, through the collective bargaining procedure.
They regulate, in particular, the rules of employment and remuneration.
Their provisions constitute the basis for determining the individual content of employment relationships and cannot be less beneficial to the employees than those of the Labour Code. As a rule, they apply only to those companies that are parties to the particular collective bargaining agreements.
Polish labour law does not recognise sector-wide collective bargaining agreements.
There are collective bargaining agreements which regulate the rights and obligations of parties to employment contracts which can be concluded at the company level (intra-company) as well as cover several employers (inter-company).
Inter-company collective bargaining agreements in Poland have covered employees in particular in the big energy, mining and railway sectors.
Work and pay bylaws
If a collective bargaining agreement is not in force, companies that employ at least 50 employees are obliged to introduce specific work and pay bylaws.
Such bylaws are usually adopted unilaterally by the employer (in some cases, the cooperation of employee representative bodies may be required). Their provisions cannot be less favourable to employees than those of the Labour Code.
Apart from the obligatory bylaws, employers may also establish voluntary bylaws, which constitute a binding internal source of labour law.
Works councils
Employers with at least 50 employees can establish a works council. It is up to the employees to demand the establishment of a works council, after being informed of passing the 50-employee threshold by the employer. The rights of the works council are mostly consultative and advisory.
Works councils are elected by workers and have the right to obtain information regarding the employer’s activity and economic situation and to obtain information and conduct consultations regarding the status, structure and expected changes in employment and regarding activities which affect the organisation of work or employment basis.
Employee representatives
In some cases (for example within the procedure of collective work terminations (lay-offs)), if there is no trade union at a workplace, the employer must conduct consultations with representatives of the employees.
The principles of electing employee representatives are defined at each employer individually.
For more information please contact
attorney Igor Bąkowski
tel. +48 22 633 67 66
or other lawyers from Bakowski Law Firm
bakowski.net.pl