Employee Rights in Poland 2026 — Essential Guide for Workers and Expats | Liczbnik

The minimum wage in Poland in 2026 is 4 666 PLN gross per month for full-time employment on an employment contract (umowa o prace). The minimum hourly rate for civil contracts (umowa zlecenie) is 30.50 PLN gross per hour. No employer can legally pay below these amounts. In net (take-home) terms, 4 666 PLN gross corresponds to approximately 3 400–3 500 PLN net after ZUS social contributions and income tax. The minimum wage is reviewed annually by the Council of Ministers, typically increasing each January.

You are entitled to 20 working days of paid annual leave per year if your total cumulative work experience (across all employers in your career) is under 10 years, and 26 working days per year if your total experience is 10 years or more. Education years count toward seniority: completing a university degree adds 8 years to your seniority count. Unused annual leave carries over to the following year and must be used by 30 September. If your employment ends with unused leave outstanding, you receive a cash payout (ekwiwalent za urlop) at your daily rate.

For indefinite-term employment contracts (umowa na czas nieokreslony), notice periods depend on length of service with the current employer: 2 weeks for under 6 months service; 1 month for 6 months to under 3 years service; 3 months for 3 or more years of service. These periods apply both when the employee resigns and when the employer gives notice. During the notice period, the employee continues to work normally and receive full pay, unless the employer places them on paid garden leave. Fixed-term contracts have specific termination rules — check your contract for details.

The standard annual overtime limit in Poland is 150 hours per year. Beyond this limit, the employer must obtain the employee's written consent. With consent, the maximum rises to 416 hours per year. Additionally, total working time (including overtime) cannot exceed 48 hours per week averaged over a reference period (typically 4 months). Employees cannot be forced to work unlimited overtime — regular excessive overtime is a Labour Code violation that employees can report to the State Labour Inspectorate (Panstwowa Inspekcja Pracy).

Yes. In Poland, sick pay starts from the first day you are unable to work due to illness, provided you have a valid zwolnienie lekarskie (medical sick note — now electronic, called L4) issued by a doctor. The employer pays 80% of your average salary for the first 33 days of absence per calendar year (14 days for employees aged 50+). After this waiting period, ZUS takes over sick pay at the same 80% rate. There is no unpaid waiting period — unlike some other European countries. For illness or injury caused by a workplace accident or during pregnancy, the rate is 100%.

For indefinite-term contracts, Polish Labour Code requires a specific, genuine and concrete reason (przyczyna) for termination. The reason must be stated in writing in the termination letter. Valid reasons include: operational reasons (likwidacja stanowiska), the employee's behaviour, inadequate performance or incapability. Termination "without cause" is illegal and can be challenged at the Labour Court (sad pracy), where the employee can seek reinstatement or compensation of 1–3 months salary. Fixed-term contracts can be terminated with notice without stating a reason, subject to standard notice periods.

Employees who believe they have been wrongfully dismissed can file a claim with the Labour Court (sad pracy) within 21 days of receiving the termination letter. The court can order reinstatement or financial compensation (odszkodowanie) of 1–3 months salary depending on service length. Certain categories of employee have special protection against dismissal: pregnant women, employees on parental leave, union representatives, employees within 4 years of retirement age and employees on sick leave. Terminating these employees without grounds results in mandatory reinstatement.

Employers can hire on a probation period (umowa na okres probny) before offering a permanent contract. Maximum probation periods in Poland: 1 month for contracts intended to last under 6 months; 2 months for contracts intended to last 6 months to 2 years; 3 months for indefinite or longer fixed-term contracts. During the probation period, notice is shorter: 3 business days (under 2 weeks probation), 1 week (probation between 2 weeks and 3 months) or 2 weeks (3-month probation). The employer must state the intended length of the subsequent contract when concluding the probation contract.

Yes, part-time employees have the same Labour Code rights as full-time employees, on a proportional basis. Annual leave is proportional to hours worked: a 0.5 FTE employee entitled to 26 days at full time receives 13 days. The minimum wage also applies proportionally — a half-time employee must receive at least 2 333 PLN gross per month in 2026. Sick pay, notice periods, parental rights and dismissal protections all apply equally to part-time workers.

PPK (Pracownicze Plany Kapitalowe) is Poland's auto-enrollment workplace pension scheme, introduced in 2019. Employees aged 18–55 are automatically enrolled and contribute 2% of gross salary (with an optional additional 2%), matched by the employer with 1.5% (plus optional 2.5%). The government adds a one-time 250 PLN welcome payment and 240 PLN annually. Employees can opt out — and many do — but this sacrifices the employer contribution and government top-up, which represents significant free money. Employees under 55 are re-enrolled automatically every 4 years even if they previously opted out.