Working Time Rules: Poland
Poland: standard working hours, overtime, rest, annual leave, and record-keeping rules - a practical overview, not legal advice.
Statutory working time
Under the Labour Code (Art. 129 § 1), working time may not exceed 8 hours per day and an average of 40 hours in a five-day working week within a settlement period not exceeding 4 months.
Overtime
The statutory default limit for overtime resulting from the employer's special needs is 150 hours per employee per calendar year, although a collective agreement, work regulations, or the employment contract may set a different limit. Overtime is generally compensated by normal pay plus a 50% or 100% supplement, depending on when it is performed, or by time off.
Rest periods
At least 11 hours of uninterrupted daily rest and at least 35 hours of uninterrupted weekly rest.
Record-keeping
Employers must keep working-time records for each employee, covering hours worked including overtime, night work, and time off.
What to check before you rely on this
- The current statutory limits, reference periods, and any opt-outs.
- Sector or collective-agreement rules that may override the defaults.
- How overtime is authorised, recorded, and compensated.
- What working-time records you must keep and for how long.