Temporary work: what is it and how does it work?

Who takes part in temporary work?

Three parties are involved in temporary work. A temporary employment agency is an entity that employs a temporary worker under a fixed-term employment contract or a civil-law contract. A temporary worker is a person employed by the agency under an employment contract. A user employer is the entity to which the temporary worker has been assigned.

For a production plant or a warehouse, this means that your company uses the work of that person, but formally their employer is the agency. The temporary worker's remuneration is calculated and paid by the agency.

What work can and cannot be entrusted to a temporary worker?

A temporary worker can be entrusted with work of a seasonal, periodic or ad hoc nature, work that could not be completed on time by the company's own employees, and work that falls within the duties of an absent employee.

The act lists four exclusions. A temporary worker may not be entrusted with particularly dangerous work, work at the post of an employee who is on strike, security work requiring the worker to be armed or, under certain conditions, work of the same kind as that of a person dismissed in the last 3 months for reasons not attributable to employees. We discuss the details in the article on the act on temporary workers.

What is the time limit on temporary work?

The same temporary worker may work for one user employer for no more than 18 months in total within a period covering 36 consecutive months. The limit also includes assignments through different agencies.

When replacing an absent employee, the period of temporary work may be extended to 36 months. When planning staffing, it is therefore worth recording from the start whether a post is a replacement or ordinary additional headcount. After such a replacement, the same worker may return to that plant as a temporary worker only after 36 months have passed.

What obligations does the user employer have?

The user employer is responsible for safe working conditions and for keeping the temporary worker's working time records. In terms of occupational health and safety (BHP), it must designate a person supervising the safety of everyone working on its premises, including temporary workers.

The user employer also provides clothing, footwear and personal protective equipment, conducts health and safety training and occupational risk assessment, and informs the agency and workers about measures preventing hazards. The obligation to organise a health and safety service under the Labour Code rests on the agency as the employer. Before the employment contract with the temporary worker is concluded, the agency and the user employer must agree in writing the extent to which the user employer takes over the remaining health and safety obligations.

Must a temporary employment agency be entered in the KRAZ register?

Yes. Running a temporary work business is a regulated activity and requires an entry in the register of entities running employment agencies, that is, KRAZ (Krajowy Rejestr Agencji Zatrudnienia). The register is kept by the voivodeship marshals.

Before signing a contract, check that the agency appears in the register. Back2Work is entered in KRAZ under number 31286.

When does temporary work make sense for a plant?

Temporary work makes sense where the need for people is seasonal, periodic or ad hoc, or when an absent employee must be replaced. This applies, for example, to a rise in orders in a warehouse or a sudden shortage of staff on a production line.

If the post is permanent and staffing is to be permanent, permanent recruitment or outsourcing of the whole process can be the better choice. With temporary work the 18-month limit within 36 months also applies, so it is not suitable for permanently covering the same position with the same person.

Frequently asked questions