Changes related to fixed-term contracts in Poland in November 2018. What should you know?

As soon as November 21, 2018, fixed term employment contracts concluded before February 22, 2016 will be forced to change. By law, these types of contracts will become indefinite term contracts as a result of the new limitations introduced. 

Basic provisions of the new law

The law that came into effect more than two years ago, introduced the following two possible limitations relating to employment on the basis of fixed term contracts in Poland:

• maximum total number of such contracts limited to three in total,
• maximum total duration of all such contracts combined limited to 33 months.

If the current contract provides for termination of employment even after the 34th month, then based on the above-mentioned limit it is transformed into a contract for an indefinite period. This means that companies are losing the option of extending such type of employment contracts, and thus they have to focus on more stable forms of cooperation.

Changes to the notice period

In addition to the above changes the new law also introduces uniform notice periods for both indefinite and fixed term contracts. This has significantly simplified the process of determining the periods after which the employment terminates. Currently these periods are:

• 2 weeks in the case of persons with a period of employment of less than 6 months,
• 1 month in the case of persons who have been employed for at least 6 months,
• 3 months for persons who have been employed for at least 3 years.

The above changes make it impossible for employers to permanently employ employees on fixed-term contracts. This contributes to greater stability. However, they do not affect casual employees who perform their duties as replacement personnel or those employed on the basis of their term of office. Unification of the provisions concerning the duration of the notice period makes it easier for both parties to determine all the necessary requirements that appear with the beginning of the duration of the employment contract.

Records of working time - general rules and changes in the way such records are maintained in relation to the GDPR (RODO)

Keeping records of working time is one of the basic duties of every employer. Failure to properly carry out this procedure constitutes a breech of workers' rights and is subject to a fine of PLN 1,000-30000. As from 28 May 2018, the provisions of the GDPR which introduced new regulations regarding access to employee personal data, also apply. How does this affect the keeping of records?

Scope of records

Above all, the obligation to keep records of working time applies to all employees, regardless of the system and organization of their employment.

This also covers:

• persons appointed by the employer to manage the company,
• persons employed based on a task-oriented system,
• persons remunerated based on a flat rate system, for work at night and overtime.

In the case of such persons there is no requirement to record working time and all that is necessary is to enter information on the fact that the employee performed their work in that position e.g. by marking them with the symbol "P".

The scope of working time records covers all data required to perform a settlement of working time and therefore a determination of the proper remuneration due for work performed. This data covers:

• work on work days,
• work on Sundays and holidays,
• overtime,
• night shift work,
• duty hours,
• delegations,
• non-working days - Saturdays and Sundays,
• holidays,
• sick leave,
• other justified and unjustified absences.

Working time records and the GDPR

Under the new regulations, it is not acceptable to keep a collective record of working time. Access to working time records can not be unlimited, and this applies to both small and large employee teams. Access to records is limited to:

• human resources employees,
• the employer or persons representing the employer (e.g. manager),
• the employee himself or a person authorized by him.

Do the working time records have to be kept in paper form?

There are no clearly defined guidelines in law in Poland which force the employer to keep records in paper form. According to the decision of the National Labor Inspectorate, it is permissible to keep records in electronic form. This solution is quite practical because a convenient employee entry and exit registration system can be connected directly to the employee's working time record. However, it should be remembered that according to the provisions of the GDPR, the registration of an employee's working time can not be done by means of fingerprint scans, retina scans or DNA sampling.