What rights and obligations does an employee on an employment contract have?

Who this applies to

People employed on an employment contract (umowa o pracę), regardless of its type and the number of hours. People on a contract of mandate (umowa zlecenia) or B2B are not employees, unless they work in the conditions set out in Article 22 § 1 of the Labour Code; in that case they may seek a declaration of an employment relationship. See Contract of mandate or employment contract.

Your rights

Pay

You have the right to fair pay (Article 13 of the Labour Code), and the employer is obliged to employ you for pay (Article 22 § 1 of the Labour Code). Pay corresponds to the type of work, qualifications, and the quantity and quality of work (Article 78 § 1 of the Labour Code) and is due for work performed (Article 80 of the Labour Code). Payment is made at least once a month, on a fixed date, no later than within the first 10 days of the following month (Article 85 § 1-2 of the Labour Code). At your request, the employer shows you the documents on the basis of which your pay was calculated (Article 85 § 5 of the Labour Code). The money goes to a bank account, unless you submit a request to be paid in cash (Article 86 § 3 of the Labour Code). For arrears: Your employer is not paying your wages; for deductions: Deductions from wages.

Equal treatment and prohibition of discrimination

Employees have equal rights for performing the same duties in the same way (Article 11(2) of the Labour Code), and any discrimination in employment is unacceptable (Article 11(3) of the Labour Code). Equal treatment covers entering into and terminating the employment relationship, terms of employment, promotion and training, regardless of, among other things, sex, age, disability, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, type of contract and number of hours (Article 18(3a) § 1 of the Labour Code). Harassment is also discrimination (Article 18(3a) § 5-6 of the Labour Code). For a breach of the principle of equal treatment you are entitled to compensation of no less than the minimum wage (Article 18(3d) of the Labour Code). From 5.11.2026 these provisions change (Dz.U. 2026 item 1046).

Dignity and protection against mobbing

The employer is obliged to respect your dignity and other personal rights (Article 11(1) of the Labour Code) and to counteract mobbing (Article 94(3) § 1 of the Labour Code). Mobbing is persistent and long-lasting harassment or intimidation that humiliates, ridicules or isolates an employee (Article 94(3) § 2 of the Labour Code); from 5.11.2026 a new definition applies. Evidence and help: Mobbing at work.

Working time and rest

Working time may not exceed 8 hours a day and an average of 40 hours in an average five-day working week (Article 129 § 1 of the Labour Code). In each 24-hour period you have the right to at least 11 hours of uninterrupted rest (Article 132 § 1 of the Labour Code), and in each week to at least 35 hours (Article 133 § 1 of the Labour Code). Overtime is allowed only for a rescue operation, a breakdown or the employer's special needs (Article 151 § 1 of the Labour Code) and is paid with a supplement of 50% or 100% (Article 151(1) of the Labour Code). The employer keeps working time records and makes them available at your request (Article 149 § 1 of the Labour Code). More: Overtime, Rota change from one day to the next.

Annual leave

You have the right to annual, uninterrupted, paid leave and you cannot waive it (Article 152 of the Labour Code). The entitlement is 20 days with less than 10 years of service and 26 days with at least 10 years of service (Article 154 § 1 of the Labour Code); in your first job you acquire leave at the end of each month (Article 153 § 1 of the Labour Code). Up to 4 days a year the employer grants at your request on the date you indicate (Article 167(2) of the Labour Code). For leave not used by the end of the contract you are entitled to a payment in lieu (Article 171 § 1 of the Labour Code). See Leave on demand and Payment in lieu of unused leave.

Safe working conditions

The employer must ensure safe and hygienic working conditions (Article 15 of the Labour Code) and is responsible for the state of health and safety (BHP) in the workplace (Article 207 § 1 of the Labour Code). Medical checks and health and safety training take place at the employer's expense (Article 229 § 6, Article 237(3) § 3 of the Labour Code). When working conditions pose a direct threat to health or life, you have the right to refrain from work and, if this does not remove the threat, to leave the place of danger, notifying your superior immediately (Article 210 § 1-2 of the Labour Code). You then keep the right to pay and may not suffer negative consequences (Article 210 § 2(1) and § 3 of the Labour Code). See Medical checks and health and safety training and Accident at work.

Written contract

An employment contract is concluded in writing. If this form was not observed, the employer confirms in writing the parties, the type of contract and its terms before admitting you to work (Article 29 § 2 of the Labour Code). Within 7 days of being admitted to work you receive information on working time standards, breaks, leave and the rules for terminating the contract (Article 29 § 3(1) of the Labour Code). What to do: Working without a written contract.

Employment certificate

The employer issues the certificate on the day the employment relationship ends, unless it re-employs you within 7 days (Article 97 § 1 of the Labour Code). Issuing it may not depend on you settling accounts with the employer (Article 97 § 1(3) of the Labour Code). You have 14 days to request a correction (Article 97 § 2(1) of the Labour Code). More: No employment certificate, correction.

Complaint to the PIP and the labour court

The National Labour Inspectorate (Państwowa Inspekcja Pracy, PIP) supervises compliance with labour law, including the provisions on pay, working time, leave and health and safety (Article 10(1)(1) of the Act on the National Labour Inspectorate). The inspector does not disclose to the employer that the inspection results from a complaint, unless you consent in writing (Article 44(3) of the Act on the National Labour Inspectorate). See How to file a complaint to the PIP. Disputes over pay, a declaration of an employment relationship, reinstatement or compensation are decided by the labour court. You file an appeal against notice of termination within 21 days of service (Article 264 § 1 of the Labour Code), and claims become time-barred after 3 years (Article 291 § 1 of the Labour Code). Which route: PIP, ZUS or labour court.

Your obligations

Conscientious work and instructions

You are obliged to perform your work conscientiously and diligently and to follow your superiors' instructions concerning work, if they are not contrary to the law or the contract (Article 100 § 1 of the Labour Code). Subordination follows from the nature of the employment relationship (Article 22 § 1 of the Labour Code). An instruction contrary to the law or the contract is not binding; if in doubt, use PIP legal advice.

Working time, work rules, confidentiality

Article 100 § 2 of the Labour Code lists in particular: observing working time, the work rules and order, health and safety and fire regulations, looking after the good of the workplace, protecting its property and keeping confidential information whose disclosure could expose the employer to harm, and observing the rules of social coexistence. So when collecting evidence for a complaint or a claim, do not take documents you are not authorised to have.

Health and safety at work

Observing health and safety regulations and rules is your basic obligation (Article 211 of the Labour Code): taking part in training, working in line with the rules, looking after equipment and tidiness, using protective equipment, undergoing medical checks, reporting an accident or hazard and cooperating with the employer (Article 211(1)-(7) of the Labour Code).

Financial liability

For damage caused to the employer through your own fault by failing to perform or improperly performing your duties, you are financially liable (Article 114 of the Labour Code), only within the limits of the actual loss (Article 115 of the Labour Code). The employer must prove fault and the amount of damage (Article 116 of the Labour Code). Compensation may not exceed three months' pay (Article 119 of the Labour Code), unless you caused the damage intentionally (Article 122 of the Labour Code). For property entrusted to you with an obligation to return it or account for it, you are liable in full, unless you prove causes beyond your control (Article 124 of the Labour Code).

Disciplinary penalties

For breaching work order, health and safety, fire regulations and the rules for confirming attendance, the employer may apply a warning or a reprimand (Article 108 § 1 of the Labour Code). A fine may be imposed only for a breach of health and safety, leaving work without justification, or alcohol or similar substances at work (Article 108 § 2 of the Labour Code), up to one day's pay for a single breach (Article 108 § 3 of the Labour Code). A penalty requires hearing the employee, within 2 weeks of learning of the breach and 3 months of the breach (Article 109 of the Labour Code), and written notification (Article 110 of the Labour Code). You file an objection within 7 days, and after it is rejected you have 14 days to apply to the court (Article 112 of the Labour Code). Penalties other than the statutory ones are a petty offence by the employer (Article 281 § 1(4) of the Labour Code).

What to do: where to get help

1. Leave a written trail. Submit your demands to the employer in a way that can be proven.
2. Use the free advice of the PIP: PIP legal advice, inspectorate helplines.
3. File a complaint to the PIP when provisions are breached: no contract, overdue pay, unpaid overtime, health and safety. The inspector may order payment of wages with immediate enforceability (Article 11(1)(7) of the Act on the National Labour Inspectorate). Check the competent inspectorate.
4. Go to the labour court when the dispute concerns the facts or you want reinstatement, compensation or a declaration of an employment relationship. Watch the deadlines: 21 days and 3 years.

Exceptions and caveats

• The provisions on equal treatment and mobbing change on 5.11.2026 (Dz.U. 2026 item 1046).
• Employees managing the workplace and people on task-based working time have separate working time rules (Article 132 § 2, Article 149 § 2 of the Labour Code).
• An employee whose duty is to save life or property may not refrain from work (Article 210 § 5 of the Labour Code). Leaving work without a direct threat may be a breach of duties.

Example

Assumptions: a full-time employee has been instructed to stay after hours for the third day in a row, and the overtime supplement for the previous month has not been paid. The employee has no access to the working time records.

The employee carries out the instruction if the overtime falls within the cases in Article 151 § 1 of the Labour Code and within the limits, but has the right to the supplement and to the records. They submit a written request under Article 149 § 1 of the Labour Code and keep their own notes of hours. When the employer does not pay, they send a demand for payment and then file a complaint to the PIP or a claim (Overtime).

Documents and deadlines

Frequently asked questions

Can my employer deduct the value of broken equipment from my pay?

Not without your written consent (Article 91 § 1 of the Labour Code) or without an enforcement order. The employer must prove fault and damage (Article 116 of the Labour Code).

Useful tools

• PIP complaint generator
• Personal record of working hours

Related guides

• Your employer did not pay your wages on time. What can you do?
• Overtime: when is it allowed, how much does the employer pay for it and how do you document it?
• Mobbing at work: what evidence to collect and where to get help?
• I am working without a written contract. What does this mean and what can I do?
• Your employer has not issued your employment certificate. What next?
• How do you file a complaint to the National Labour Inspectorate?

Sources (documents in Polish)

• Kodeks pracy, t.j. Dz.U. 2026 poz. 1245 (art. 11(1), 11(2), 11(3), 13, 15, 18(3a), 18(3d), 22, 29, 78, 80, 85, 86, 91, 94(3), 97, 100, 108, 109, 110, 112, 114, 115, 116, 119, 122, 124, 129, 132, 133, 149, 151, 151(1), 152, 153, 154, 167(2), 171, 207, 210, 211, 229, 237(3), 264, 281, 291)
• Metryka ELI ustawy z 19.06.2026, Dz.U. 2026 poz. 1046 (zmiany od 5.11.2026)
• Ustawa o Państwowej Inspekcji Pracy, tekst ujednolicony ISAP (art. 10, 11, 44)

Sources checked on 16 October 2026. Law as at 16 October 2026.

Change history

• 16 October 2026: First publication.