Poland: New OHS Regulations Allow Financing of Employees’ Contact Lenses

At the end of 2023, new health and safety regulations for jobs equipped with screen monitors came into force. One of the changes is that employers will have a legal basis to provide funding for contact lenses for employees. Until now, the regulations only resolved to provide corrective glasses to employees who needed them. In practice, the provision took the form of co-financing the purchase of glasses by the employer.

Nevertheless, it should be emphasized that under the health and safety regulations, in the first instance, the employer is obliged to provide the employee with access to preventive health care. Its effect may be a medical recommendation for vision correction, and on this basis, the employee may apply for a subsidy for the purchase of glasses or contact lenses, provided that:

• He/she is employed under an employment contract;
• He/she works in front of a computer screen for at least 4 hours a day (this includes tablets and smartphones);
• He/she has a medical certificate that confirms the need for corrective glasses or contact lenses.

However, the regulation does not indicate the value of the subsidy amount, which is to be decided by the employer.