PRO HR Year Book 2024

  • We discuss current and practical issues in the area of our main practices: labour law, business crime & compliance, immigration & global mobility, court cases, employee taxes, remunerations (comp & ben), occupational health and safety, personal data protection, and diversity, equity & inclusion (DEI).

    The obligation to counteract workplace bullying rests with the employer and arises from the fundamental requirement to respect the employee’s dignity. This is one of the key obligations of each employer in Poland.

    Mediation is one of the methods of resolving disputes which is gaining importance in the Polish legal system. Regulated by the Civil Procedure Code, mediation aims to enable parties to reach agreement in a less formal, faster, and more flexible way than a standard court procedure. Mediation may be used in both civil cases, including labour law cases, and in business cases.

    As the last member state of the European Union, Poland has implemented the EU Directive on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law. The Whistleblower Protection Act which was adopted on 14 June 2024 introduced a protection regime for persons who report breaches in several areas of law. It also put an obligation on employers with at least 50 employees to implement procedures to make internal reports. All provisions of the Act have come into effect and must be complied with.

    The European Union member states, including Poland, have time until 7 June 2026 to implement the Directive on Pay Transparency (“the Directive”). The Directive imposes an obligation to apply mechanisms of transparency of pay and tools for its enforcement in order to strengthen the application of the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women.

    Data can be stored for the period of three years after the completed recruitment. This was confirmed in February 2024 by the Supreme Administrative Court. The President of the Personal Data Protection Office has disagreed with this assessment and in one of administrative decisions he stated that personal data should be deleted immediately after the completed recruitment and then filed a last resort appeal against the judgement favourable for the data controller.

    In the recent years Polish employers (in particular larger ones) have begun to notice the significance of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). This was clear in 2024 and it is predicted that this trend will continue in the next few years.

    Employee incentive schemes based on shares are an effective tool to attract and retain talents. They also motivate employees to long-term involvement in the development of the company. Companies, in particular international ones, are keen to implement them and include employees of their branches in Poland.

    Harmful effect of reprotoxic substances on sexual function and fertility in adult males and females, as well as on the development of their offspring resulted in adopting in 9 March 2022 the Directive (EU) 2022/431 of the European Parliament and of the Council amending the Directive 2004/37/EC on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to carcinogens or mutagens at work. More than two years later, on 29 June 2024, the regulations of the Directive 2022/431 were implemented in the Polish law.

    Last year was marked mainly by another amendment of the regulations relating to the citizens of Ukraine who arrived to Poland due to the war. The change in the ruling party brought also modifications in the visa system and the draft immigration strategy for 2025-2030. New draft laws on concerning regulations on the legalisation of employment and residence of foreigners in Poland were presented.

Autorzy

Łukasz Kuczkowski

Managing Partner / Attorney-at-law / Executive MBA

Since 2003, Łukasz has been supporting clients in the People & Culture area, in particular in the field of labour law, social security, compliance and forms of employee pension security.

In particular Łukasz specialises in:

  • hiring and firing of managers,
  • workforce restructuring, including collective redundancies,
  • collective bargaining agreements,
  • relations with trade unions,
  • employee pension provision (ECSs, EPPs, etc.),
  • employee compliance,
  • countering mobbing and discrimination.

Piotr Graczyk

Advocate / Partner

Since the beginning of 2014, Piotr has been supporting clients in the People & Culture area, in particular in the field of labour law and social security.

In particular Piotr specialises in:

  • strategic planning regarding the defence against employee claims,
  • advice on dismissals (including collective dismissals),
  • litigation of employment claims,
  • litigation in cases involving appeals against the Social Security Institution’s decisions,
  • implementation of procedures against mistreatment,
  • conducting internal investigations regarding mobbing, discrimination and other forms of mistreatment,
  • relations with trade unions.

Co-manages the firm’s litigation practice.

Piotr Lewandowski

Attorney-at-law / Partner

Since the beginning of 2010, Piotr has been supporting clients in the People & Culture area, in particular in the field of labour law and social security.

In particular Piotr specialises in:

  • preparation of internal acts, e.g. labour, remuneration and bonus rules and regulations,
  • advice and drafting of redundancy documents,
  • litigation of employment claims,
  • implementation of procedures against mistreatment,
  • conducting internal investigations regarding mobbing, discrimination and other forms of mistreatment,
  • relations with trade unions.

Co-manages the firm’s litigation practice.

Damian Tokarczyk, PhD

Advocate / Of counsel / Doctor of law

Damian has been dealing with criminal procedure law since 2013, representing suspects/defendants and victims before law enforcement agencies and courts. He has been working with Raczkowski since 2016.

In particular, Damian specialises in business criminal law (including criminal labour law) and other procedures of a similar nature. He also deals with other areas, including:

  • whistleblower protection and internal investigations,
  • administrative criminal proceedings,
  • misdemeanour proceedings,
  • inspections by the State Labour Inspectorate and other services,
  • prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing,
  • prevention of sexual offences.

Natalia Krzyżankiewicz

Advocate / Senior Lawyer

Since 2016, Natalia has been supporting clients in the People & Culture area, in particular in the field of labour law and social security.

In particular Natalia specialises in:

  • workforce restructuring, including collective redundancies,
  • high profile dismissals,
  • implementation of internal policies and regulations,
  • litigation.

Katarzyna Wilczyk

Attorney-at-law / Senior Lawyer

Since 2012, Katarzyna has been supporting clients in the People & Culture area, in particular in the field of labour law and social security.

In particular Katarzyna specialises in:

  • individual employment law,
  • countering mobbing and discrimination, including investigating mobbing and other undesirable behaviour in the workplace,
  • ongoing support for employers in the field of Compensation & Benefits,
  • litigation and disputes with the Social Security Institution (ZUS),
  • legal due diligence.

Michalina Kaczmarczyk

Attorney-at-law / Senior Lawyer

Since 2015, Michalina has been supporting clients in the People & Culture area, in particular in the field of labour law, personal data and copyright law.

In particular Michalina specialises in:

  • conducting cases before the Personal Data Protection Office,
  • litigation,
  • ongoing advice in the area of personal data protection,
  • supporting diversity in the workplace,
  • countering mobbing and discrimination.

Zuzanna Rosner

Attorney-at-law / Senior Lawyer Account Manager

Since 2011, Zuzanna has been supporting clients in the People & Culture area, in particular in the field of labour law and social security.

In particular Zuzanna specialises in:

  • hiring and dismissal of staff, including managers,
  • implementation of global and local regulations and policies,
  • workforce restructuring, including collective redundancies,
  • parental entitlements,
  • countering mobbing and discrimination,
  • supporting diversity in the workplace.

Joanna Stolarek

Tax Advisor / Senior Lawyer

Since 2004, Joanna has been supporting clients in People & Culture, with a particular focus on personal income tax, social security and health insurance.

Member of the Tax Council of the Polish Confederation Lewiatan. Joanna serves as a Board Advisor of the „Remuneration Institute” Association, of which Raczkowski Law Firm is a strategic partner.

Monika Czekanowicz

Attorney-at-law / Lawyer

Since 2013, Monika has been supporting clients in the People & Culture area, in particular in the field of labour law and social security, and occupational health and safety.

In particular Monika specialises in:

  • implementation of occupational health and safety management systems,
  • implementation of fire protection projects,
  • development of accident prevention, in particular premedical first aid procedures,
  • supporting diversity in the workplace,
  • countering mobbing and discrimination,
  • workforce restructuring, including collective redundancies.

Agnieszka Szymańska

Immigration Consultant

Since 2018, Agnieszka has been supporting clients in the immigration law area, in particular in the field of legalisation of work and residence of foreigners in Poland.

In particular Agnieszka specialises in:

  • obtaining declarations on entrusting the performance of work,
  • obtaining residence and work permits in a highly qualified occupation (Blue Card),
  • obtaining residence permits for family members of foreigners,
  • legalisation of residence and work of Ukrainian nationals in Poland.