A draft amendment to the Labor Code has been submitted to the Polish Parliament (Sejm) to shorten the weekly working time standard. The members of parliament who submitted the proposal propose that the current 40-hour workday would be replaced by a 35-hour standard. This would be achieved by reducing the daily working time standard to seven hours. The proposal, of course, assumes that remuneration for work performed would remain unchanged despite the shortened hours. At the same time, overtime standards would be amended, making it impossible to exceed an average of 43 hours per week.

The rationale behind these changes is to provide employees with more free time. This would prevent burnout and improve the health of Poles. At the same time, it was pointed out that due to increased rest, employees would increase their productivity during their remaining working hours. Furthermore, due to fewer hours worked by employees, employment would increase.

However, it is doubtful that, given the enormous challenges facing the Polish economy, the project's authors' idea will be accepted. Although Poles are among the longest-serving nations in the OECD and the European Union, this doesn't seem likely to change anytime soon.

This alert is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.

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