Remote work has become a fully-fledged format of work and employment along with office work, its regulation in Poland – below.

Remote work is regulated by the provisions of Section Rozdział IIc ‘Praca zdalna’ of the Labor Code (Kodeks pracy).

Remote work means performing work in whole or in part at a place specified by the employee, including his/her residential address, and each time agreed upon with the employer.

Work can be performed remotely either all the time, partially or in a hybrid manner: partly at home, partly in the organization.

Remote work can be agreed upon between the employee and the employer:

• upon conclusion of an employment contract or
• during the period of employment (in the form of changing the terms of the employment contract; written form is not required).

The employer may assign remote work to the employee without coordinating it with him/her in special cases, i.e. during:

• a state of emergency, epidemic regime or epidemic threat regime and for 3 months after their cancellation,
• force majeure circumstances, when the employer is temporarily unable to provide safe and hygienic working conditions at the employee's current workplace.

The employer, as a rule, is obliged to consider an application for transfer to remote work submitted by:

• a pregnant employee,
• an employee raising a child until he/she reaches the age of 4,
• an employee caring for a family member who is disabled,
• an employee specified in Article 142 of the Labor Code:

– an employee who is a parent of a child with a disability or an illness that arose during the prenatal period of the child's development or during childbirth;

– an employee who is a parent of a child with a disability in accordance with the provisions on professional and social rehabilitation and employment of disabled persons;

– an employee who is the child's parent and has an opinion on the need for early support of the child's development, a decision on the need for special education, or a decision on the need for rehabilitation and educational classes in accordance with the provisions of the Law of December 14, 2016 "On Education".

The employer has the right to refuse such an employee a transfer to remote work only if its implementation is impossible due to the nature of the work or the organization of work. The employer is obliged to inform the employee of the reason for the refusal.

Periodic remote work:

• at the employee's request, the opportunity to work remotely is sometimes provided (with the consent of the employer),
• 24 days in a calendar year.

The employer is obliged to:

• provide the remote employee with materials and work tools, including technical devices necessary for remote work,
• ensure the installation, maintenance and repair of work tools, as well as the costs of electricity and the necessary telecommunications services,
• cover other costs directly related to remote work, if such an obligation is specified in the contract / regulation,
• provide the remote employee with the training necessary to perform this work and technical support,
• provide the remote employee with the opportunity to be on the territory of the workplace, communicate with other employees, use the premises and equipment of the employer, the company's social facilities and social events.

The employee and the employer have the right to refuse remote work; the procedure for such an appeal and the restoration of the traditional form of work is established in the Labor Code.

The employer fulfills the obligations in relation to the remote employee to ensure labor protection, with the exception of those that cannot be performed due to the remote nature of the work. Initial training in labor protection and safety for persons hired for remote work in administrative and office positions may be conducted using electronic means of communication.

It is not allowed to assign remote work that results in the use of substances or materials that are dangerous or harmful to health.

Before allowing remote work, the employer is obliged to prepare an occupational risk assessment, including a universal assessment for individual groups of workers, and on its basis to prepare information containing the principles of safe remote work and familiarize the employee with it.

In the event of an accident during remote work, the provisions on accidents at work apply accordingly to the investigation of the accident. Inspection of the scene of the accident must be carried out immediately, but in the case of remote work, its date is agreed between the employee and the relevant commission of the employer.

The following link on the state portal provides detailed information on the conditions of remote work in Poland.