Polish president signs new labour law, but sends it to top court
Polish President Karol Nawrocki on Thursday rubber-stamped a new labour legislation, but also sent it to the Constitutional Tribunal for verification.
Formally known as the Law on the National Labour Inspectorate (PIP), the legislation strengthens the powers of PIP when it comes to turning bogus temporary contracts, which often have no benefits and offer no protection to employees, into standard job contracts.
Employee organisations have for years appealed to the government to change the situation in which the employer can force a desperate employee to take up the less beneficial contract while asking them to do a job that would normally require standard employment, including social insurance, health insurance and pension premiums, the right to vacation and paid sick leave.
Short term and business-to-business contracts, which are designed mainly for commissioned work, do not offer any of those benefits, but are often used by certain employers to reduce costs of labour.
"I still have serious reservations about some of the provisions – particularly those that grant the National Labour Inspectorate very broad powers over businesses," Nawrocki was quoted as saying in a statement published on the presidential website on Thursday.
"The government must be strong – but it must not interfere excessively," he added.
The Constitutional Tribunal will now review the law for its constitutionality, but until then it will remain in force.
Under the new regulations, a PIP inspector can instruct an employer to turn a given no-benefit contract into a standard one if ordinary employment features dominate in the existing work agreement between the employer and the employee.
If the employer fails to do so, the inspector can escalate the issue to the district labour inspector, who may launch an administrative procedure changing the contract into a standard one or ask the court to resolve the dispute.
The employer can appeal the inspector's decision to court. (PAP)
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