Changes in Labour Law | February 2023

We encourage you to read the newsletter HRstacja | Changes in Labour Law prepared by experts from the Employment Law team and the Human Advisory Services team at CRIDO.

Remote work and sobriety control | When will the new regulations come into force?

An amendment to the Labour Code regarding the introduction of provisions on remote work and sobriety control has been signed by the President of the Republic of Poland and published in the Journal of Laws. As a reminder, the provisions on sobriety control will come into force within 14 days, and in the case of remote work – within 2 months from the date of publication in the Journal of Law. Thus, we can expect the amendment to take effect from 21st February 2023 with regard to sobriety control, and as for remote work – from 7th April 2023. Among other things, the changes will require employers to adjust internal regulations or establish rules for covering costs in the case of remote work.

The amendment to the Special Act on assistance to Ukrainian citizens | What changes does it introduce?

On 28^th January2023, another amendment to the so–called ”Special Act’ on assistance to citizens of Ukrainian citizens came into force, regulating, among other things, the rules of their stay in Poland. Under the new regulations, from 1^st April 2023, working or self-employed Ukrainian citizens who have a PESEL number with UKR status will be able to apply for a temporary residence permit.

The amended law also provides for the repeal of the so-called “covid provisions” on the renewal of foreigners’ residence titles, effective 24^th August 2023.

Work-life balance and information directive | First reading in the Sejm

The last session of the Sejm (i.e. 25^th January) saw the first reading of a draft amendment to the Labour Code regarding the implementation of EU directives: (i) the work-life balance directive and (ii) the directive on transparent and predictable working conditions. The amendments provide, among other things, for new employee entitlements (e.g. extension of parental leave, introduction of care leave) and new rules for contracts concluded for a probationary period (among other things, new periods of their validity).

The draft amendment has been referred for further work in the Parliamentary Committee on Social Policy and Family, which has until 7^th February  this year to present their report. Although we are at the beginning of the legislative path, it is worth remembering that the new regulations will come into force within 21 days from the date of publication in the Official Journal.

Protection of whistleblowers | Summary of the latest draft law

There have been other recent changes to the draft law on whistleblower protection. One of the most interesting changes is the fact that the provision for accepting external reports by the Ombudsman has been removed. External reports will be accepted by any public body. Interestingly, when a whistleblower is unable to identify a competent public body, their report will be able to be directed to the State Labour Inspectorate.

In addition, external reports, the subject of which may constitute a crime, will be submitted to the Police. The notifier themself will be able, at their request, to obtain a certificate from a public authority confirming that he or she is subject to protection.

These are just some of the latest changes, but all indications are that this is still not the final version, so we expect further changes to the bill.

The employer should take into account the private situation of employees when selecting for dismissal | Supreme Court ruling

The selection of an employee for dismissal may be considered contrary to the principles of social intercourse when the personal situation of that employee is significantly worse than that of the other employees in the downsized positions. This is exactly what the Supreme Court ruled in the judgment of 11^th October 2022, ref. I PSKP 77/21.

The verdict confirms the approach in the case law so far on comparing employees and selecting people for dismissal, which can to some extent hinder employers from carrying them out smoothly. For proper selection, a broader comparison of the family situation of individual employees may be necessary. However, the Supreme Court pointed out that the criterion in the form of personal situation is, so to speak, auxiliary in the selection for dismissal.

Regardless of the position presented by the Supreme Court, it is worth noting that in the process of downsizing, the process of selecting employees for dismissal should be carried out meticulously. This will minimize the risk of potential conflict, as well as allow employees to better understand the actions taken by the employer.