1. Introduction
Poland has been a part of the European Union since 2004. This step forced governments to simplify procedures of pursuit of economic activities. However, the number of regulations concerning doing business is still huge. To start the simplest business a person must comply with registration regulations, labour law requirements, social security contributions and taxes. Abovementioned factors pose following risks on company/proprietorship – risk of unexamined requests, delays, controls, fines.
The Law Office “A. Sobczyk I Współpracownicy” is dedicated to corporations. Our assistance to corporate clients includes the complete range of labour law as well as all employment related matters, such as personal data protection, compliance, working time, social contributions and migration law. The Law Office also offers comprehensive assistance during trials and court litigations, as well as other official proceedings or audits performed by respective authorities.
2. Labour and Employment Law Requirements
a) Employer Policy Requirements
1) Remuneration regulations:
- Any employer employing at least 50 employees, who are not covered by a single-establishment collective labour agreement, or any multi-establishment collective labour agreement, shall fix the conditions of remuneration for work in the rules relating to remuneration;
- Any employer employing less than 50 employees who are not covered by a single-establishment collective labour agreement or any multi-establishment collective labour agreement, may fix the conditions of remuneration for work in the rules for remuneration;
- Any employer employing at least 20 and less than 50 employees who are not covered by a single-establishment collective labour agreement or any multi-establishment collective labour agreement, shall fix the conditions of remuneration for work in the rules for remuneration, if the trade union organisation of an establishment submits a request for fixing thereof.
In the rules for remuneration the employer should also fix other benefits connected to work and the principles of allocating them. Moreover, the rules of remuneration shall be fixed by the employer. If there exists in the establishment a trade union organisation functioning in relation to the employer, the employer shall agree the rules of remuneration with such organisation.
2) Workplace regulations:
- An employer employing at least 50 employees shall implement workplace regulations, unless the provisions of a collective labour agreement apply;
- An employer employing less than 50 employees may implement workplace regulations, unless the provisions of a collective labour agreement apply;
- An employer employing at least 20 and less than 50 employees shall implement workplace regulations, provided that the trade union organisation of an establishment submits a request for introducing thereof, unless the provisions of a collective labour agreement apply.
Workplace regulations while specifying the rights and duties of employer and employees connected with order in the employing establishment, must specify in particular: organisation of work, conditions for staying on the premises of the employing establishment during working time and after hours, equipping of employees with tools and materials, clothing and working shoes, and with means of individual protection and personal hygiene, working-time systems and schedules and adopted working-time settlement systems, night-time; the date, the place, the time and frequency of payment of remuneration; the types of work prohibited to young employees and women; types of work and list of working posts open to young employees for the purposes of occupational training; the list of the types of light work which may be performed by young adults employed for other purposes than occupational training; duties applicable to work safety and hygiene and fire protection, including the method of advising employees of occupational risks connected with work performed thereby; the method adopted by a given employer to confirm the time of an employee’s arrival at work, their presence at work and leave of absence from work.
3) Company Social Benefits Fund (ZFŚS)
Employers who, as of 1 January of a given year, employ at least 50 full-time equivalent employees are obliged to establish a Company Social Benefits Fund (ZFŚS). However, it is possible to opt out of establishing the Fund by introducing appropriate provisions in the collective labour agreement or the remuneration regulations (upon agreement with employee representatives). Employers with fewer than 50 employees shall either establish the Fund or pay a holiday allowance. Should they choose to opt out of both, they are required to inform their employees of this fact by the end of January of each calendar year. The resources of the Fund, if established, must be expended in accordance with the “social criterion,” i.e., taking into account the life, family, and financial situation of the entitled person. The rules and conditions for using services and benefits financed by the Fund are set forth in the Social Benefits Fund Regulations, which are agreed upon with the trade unions. In the event that no trade unions operate at the employer’s workplace, the regulations shall be agreed upon with employees elected by the workforce to represent their interests.
4) Whistleblowing Procedure
As a general rule, legal entities employing at least 50 individuals are obliged to establish an internal reporting procedure that enables the reporting of legal infringements information about which was obtained in a work-related context. The procedure must specify secure reporting channels, designate an impartial unit or person to handle the reports, and define the process for taking follow-up actions. The primary objective of these regulations is to ensure the protection of persons reporting irregularities (whistleblowers) against retaliatory measures. This document is subject to consultation with the workplace trade union or employee representatives before it officially enters into force.
5) Implementation of Remote Work Documentation
The performance of remote work requires an agreement between the parties to the employment relationship, established either within the employment contract or during the course of employment. The rules for its application are defined in an agreement concluded with trade unions or in remote work regulations, following consultation with employee representatives if no trade unions are active at the workplace. The documents must specify the rules for the employer to cover costs of electricity and telecommunications services, as well as define the methods of communication and monitoring. An essential element of the implementation is the preparation of an occupational risk assessment and obtaining a statement from the employee confirming that they possess the necessary premises and technical conditions to perform remote work.
b) Employee Recruitment
The Labour Code provides an exhaustive list of personal data that an employer may request from a job candidate:
- First name(s) and surname;
- Date of birth;
- Contact details indicated by such person;
- Education;
- Professional qualifications;
- Employment history, excluding information about remuneration in the current and previous employment.
However, the Employer may request the last three items only when it is necessary to perform work of a specific type or in a specific position.
Employers are also obliged to use gender-neutral job titles and to provide job candidates with information regarding the remuneration provided for the position: its initial amount or range, or the relevant pay regulations applicable at the employer.
c) Health and Safety and Occupational Medicine
1) Employee Training
Employers are required to complete certain health and safety training activities. The following is statutorily mandated training that employers must provide:
- initial training (general instruction and on-the-job training)
- periodic training
2) Occupational Risk Assessment
An occupational risk assessment must be conducted and documented for each job position. The employee must be familiarised with this document. The assessment should identify hazards and specify the necessary protective and preventive measures.
3) Occupational Medicine
The employer is obliged to provide employees with preventive healthcare, which is carried out through:
- pre-employment medical examinations
- periodic medical examinations
- follow-up medical examinations
The costs of these examinations are borne entirely by the employer and should be performed, as far as possible, during working hours with the right to remuneration maintained. The basis for performing the examination is a referral issued by the employer, containing a description of the working conditions and any onerous or hazardous factors present. The employer may not admit an individual to work without a valid medical certificate stating that there are no contraindications to work in a given position. Furthermore, the company must conclude a written agreement with an occupational medicine unit for the provision of these services.
d) Employment Agreements
A contract of employment is concluded for an indefinite term, for a fixed term, or for the trial period.
A contract of employment should define the parties to the contract, the address of the employer’s registered office (or place of residence), the type of the contract, date of conclusion of the contract, and the conditions of work and pay, in particular:
- the nature of the work;
- the place of work;
- the amount of remuneration for work corresponding to the type of the work, including individual components of remuneration;
- working time;
- the date of commencement of work.
In the case of fixed-term contracts:
- The duration or the end date;
- Additionally, in the case of a probationary period contract – the period for which the parties intend to conclude a fixed-term employment contract in the future.
A contract of employment shall be concluded in writing. If a contract of employment is not concluded in written form, the employer should present to the employee written confirmation of the parties to the contract, type of the contract and conditions of the contract, no later than on the date of commencement of work by the employee.
No later than within 7 days from the date of admitting the employee to work, the employer shall inform the employee in writing and in detail about the conditions of work.
e) Other requirements
1) Employee Documentation and Working Time Records
The employer is legally obliged to maintain and store documentation related to the employment relationship and personnel files in a manner that guarantees their confidentiality and integrity. An integral part of this documentation is the working time records, maintained separately for each employee for the purpose of correctly determining remuneration and other benefits. These records must include, inter alia, information on work performed on individual days, on Sundays and public holidays, at night, overtime hours, as well as on-call duty and leaves. The documentation may be maintained in paper or electronic form, and the retention period is, as a general rule, 10 years from the end of the calendar year in which the employment relationship was terminated.
2) Implementation of GDPR Documentation
The employer, acting as the data controller, is obliged to implement procedures compliant with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The documentation should include privacy notices (information clauses) for candidates and employees, authorisations to process data, and a record of processing activities. It is also necessary to develop internal security policies that define data protection rules and procedures for handling data breaches.
3) Employee Capital Plans (PPK)
The implementation of the Employee Capital Plan (PPK) within a company requires the selection of a financial institution, which must generally be preceded by an agreement with employee representatives. If there are no trade unions operating within the company, the employer is obliged to appoint employee representatives in accordance with the company’s established procedures. The appointed representatives take part in consultations regarding the terms of the PPK management agreement.
3. Corporate Law Requirements
a) Compliance for Incorporation
First of all, the person must decide what kind of activity is the most profitable and/or possible. Business may by conducted as an individual person’s business activity, corporations (limited liability company and joint-stock company, simple joint-stock company) and partnerships (general partnership, limited liability partnership, limited partnership, limited joint-stock partnership).
To incorporate a new company (in general) the agreement/articles of incorporation etc. must be concluded and share capital must be paid. In most cases, a public notary should be involved. After this step it is obligatory to perform registration in the National Court Register. District Courts keep the National Court Registers.
b) Post Incorporation Obligations
The newly incorporated company must open a bank account. This bank account must be provided to respective Tax Authority.
The company must also register itself as VAT payer, of course if the activity is linked with VAT.
