Polish Companies Regularly Violating Labour Laws

30 August 2011 (PLANSPONSOREurope.com) – Many employers regularly violate Poland's labour laws, with staff working far beyond legal limits, according to the Polish Labour Inspectorate.  

From among 1,400 employers audited last year by the National Labour Inspectorate, around half failed to keep record of working hours adequately, while a third did not grant legitimate free days to staff. 

According to the inspectors, companies stated that they prefer to be fined for breaching regulations rather than fulfill their legal obligations. 

Under the Polish labour code, the five-day working week of workers on employment contracts cannot exceed 8 hours per day, or 40 hours per week. 

According to a report issued by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, Poles are the second busiest of the 34 OECD countries, after South Korea. 

The average Pole works 40.7 hours per week, 10 times longer than the Dutch and 5 times longer than the Germans. 

Katherine Blackler
editors@plansponsoreurope.com