Category: Labour law

An employer cannot allow an employee to work without a current medical certificate stating the absence of contraindications to work in a specific position. Therefore, a medical opinion is one of the crucial documents that the employer should possess before allowing an employee to work.

However, there are situations that require employers to exercise special caution in this regard, such as the need to appeal a medical opinion or the necessity for additional (extraordinary) referral of an employee for preventive examinations.

Additionally, we would like to remind you that the deadline for completing overdue medical examinations is approaching, the validity of which has been extended based on the so-called COVID regulations.

Recently, we have been receiving an increased number of questions about aspects related to the calling of an employee to territorial military service in the Territorial Defense Forces (WOT). Calling up to the WOT triggers a number of obligations on the part of the employer and entitlements on the part of the employee, which must be kept in mind, and above all – to be performed within the statutory deadlines. In today’s blog post, we will outline what employers whose employees have volunteered to serve in the WOT must keep in mind.

The April amendment to the Labour Code introduced changes aimed at ensuring, among other things, the preservation of a balance between employees’ private and professional lives. Undoubtedly, the expansion of certain rights and the introduction of new exemptions from work will result in greater flexibility in combining professional and family duties.

For employers, however, effective planning and organization of work can pose a significant challenge, especially in cases where employees are unexpectedly or for an extended period absent from work, and existing employees cannot be assigned, for example, to work overtime. In this context, questions arise about whether and when an employer can refuse an employee’s request for a specific leave or exemption from work, and when the employer is bound by the employee’s application.

In today’s dynamic business world, many companies are moving toward globalization. Companies are increasingly operating on an international level, which brings with it various challenges, including human resources management. In response to these changes, and to ensure adequate standards of worker protection, the European Union introduced Directive 2023/970 from May 10, 2023, on strengthening the application of the principle of equal pay for women and men for equal work or work of equal value through pay transparency and enforcement mechanisms (referred to as the “Payroll Directive”), which aims to regulate pay and compensation of workers at the European level.

In this article, we will look at the main aspects of this directive and discuss what implications it has for companies doing business in the European Union.

Part-time workers are employees who work fewer hours than full-time employees, which is less than the standard 160 hours per month.

Overtime for part-time employees refers to the additional working hours that exceed the agreed-upon contractual hours but do not reach a full-time workload. An example would be a half-time employee who works more overtime hours than specified in their contract but does not reach a full-time workload.

The repercussions of workplace mobbing can impact various aspects of an employer’s operations, notably its reputation, employee morale, and financial matters.

It is important to bear in mind that, for any behavior to be classified as mobbing, it must meet specific legal criteria, which encompass persistent and enduring actions or conduct such as harassment or intimidation directed towards an employee, resulting in a diminished professional evaluation, aimed at or causing degradation or humiliation, isolation, or exclusion from the team of coworkers. This implies that not every undesirable behavior in the workplace can be termed as mobbing. Conversely, a prompt and efficient response by the employer should help curb undesirable behaviors before they can be characterized as long-lasting and persistent.

Polish labour law provides regulations that allow an employee to pursue a claim in the event of mobbing or discrimination in the workplace. In addition to the concepts of discrimination and mobbing, the Labour Code mentions unequal treatment. The distinction between these phenomena is very important in the case of litigation and the issue of the allocation of the burden of proof, which is why in today’s blog post we will analyse an extremely important resolution of the Supreme Court of August 24, 2023, ref. III PZP 1/23, which undoubtedly served to clarify emerging doubts about the interpretation of the regulations.

Mobbing and discrimination are problems that affect society on many levels, both in the workplace and in everyday life. The fight against these phenomena does not rest only on the shoulders of individuals or employers. Society as a whole, supported by NGOs and their initiatives, is taking active steps to raise awareness and counter mobbing and discrimination. In this article, we will take a look at these activities and see if and what steps society is taking to combat these negative phenomena.

In the pages of our blog, we very often cover topics related to various aspects of discrimination and mobbing, which only proves how important these issues have become in the world today, and how strongly the need for awareness of the dangers and ways to protect against them is increasing. Today’s post will focus on what is at stake for an employee who has engaged in mobbing behavior against a co-worker.