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PRACTICE AREAS

Your team in Poland, built to last Employment & Workforce

Polish labor law doesn’t work like US employment law and US companies discover that the hard way. B2B contractors can be reclassified as employees. Terminations require documented cause. Equity programs need Polish law treatment to be valid. We give US companies the employment architecture, documentation, and ongoing support to hire, retain, and manage Polish talent without inheriting the risks that come with building a team you don’t fully understand.

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COMMON ISSUES

What companies get wrong about Polish employment

Companies building Polish teams often apply  employment logic to a jurisdiction that operates differently. The B2B relationships that looked clean on paper, the equity promises that weren’t documented, the terminations that weren’t supported – all of them surface eventually.

Your B2B contractors may be employees under Polish law Polish labor law and soon the State Labor Inspectorate under the 2026 PIP reform - can reclassify B2B contractors as employees if the substance of the relationship looks like employment. Most US companies don't know where their Polish B2B arrangements sit on that line.
We audit your existing B2B relationships against Polish employment law criteria, assess reclassification risk for each engagement, and redesign the ones that are exposed - before the Labor Inspectorate does it for you.
Terminating a Polish employee isn't like ending a US contract Polish employment law requires cause for termination, written notice with justification, mandatory consultation with trade unions (where applicable), and specific notice periods. A US-style at-will termination in Poland is a wrongful dismissal lawsuit waiting to happen.
We design your termination framework — cause documentation, notice procedures, severance structure, and post-termination risk mitigation, so that workforce decisions in Poland have a defensible legal foundation.
Your equity and incentive promises for Polish talent aren't legally binding US RSU grants, option plans, and phantom equity arrangements don't automatically apply in the Polish legal context. Polish tax treatment, corporate law, and employment law all interact and informal promises without the right Polish law documentation can't be enforced.
We design equity and incentive programs for your Polish team that are legally valid, tax-efficient under Polish law, and aligned with what your US cap table and equity plan allow.

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Krzysztof Macionczyk

I've always been drawn to the different ways you can approach a legal problem. My focus is on solutions that hold up long term, not just fixes for right now. I help founders make legal decisions that bring order to the business and head off problems before they start.

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WHO THIS IS FOR

built for US companies with Polish employees and contractors

We work best with US founders, HR leads, and operators who are building or managing Polish teams and need employment structures that are legally defensible, scalable, and manageable without a Polish in-house legal team.

You're a US company hiring your first Polish employees

You need the right engagement model, contracts, and documentation from the start - not after your first dispute.

  • CEO
  • COO
  • Head of HR

You're managing a Polish B2B team and worried about reclassification

The 2026 PIP reform gives Polish labor inspectors new powers to reclassify B2B as employment. You need to know your exposure now.

  • HR Director
  • HR Business Partner
  • Compliance Officer

You're scaling a Polish development or operations team rapidly

Growth creates employment complexity. You need a scalable model with documentation your managers can use without calling a lawyer every time.

  • CTO
  • VP Engineering
  • COO

OUTCOMES

what you can expect

What a compliant Polish workforce setup gives you.

Employment decisions that hold up

Terminations, restructurings, and role eliminations executed with the right documentation survive labor court scrutiny.

B2B arrangements that don't blow up

Your Polish contractor relationships are correctly structured for what they actually are.

Equity that actually retains

Your Polish team's equity and incentive programs are legally valid, tax-efficient, and enforced when they're supposed to be.

Compliant at inspection

When the Polish State Labor Inspectorate visits, your employment records, contracts, and working time documentation are in order.

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HOW WE WORK TOGETHER

from first hire to full team

How we build Polish employment compliance.

Design

We define the right engagement model and document it correctly before you hire.

  • Employment Model Design
  • ESOP
  • Cross-Border Mobility

Document

We build the contracts, policies, and manager toolkit your Polish team needs.

  • HR Documentation
  • Work Organization
  • Anti-Harassment

Audit

We review existing arrangements for reclassification risk and compliance gaps.

  • B2B Compliance Audit
  • HR Documentation
  • Work Organization

Manage

We support the workforce decisions, restructurings, and regulatory reviews that come as your team grows.

  • Employer Restructuring
  • Whistleblower Program
  • Cross-Border Mobility
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BLOG

knowledge base

Practical reads on Polish and EU law, written for the people actually running the business – not studying it.

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YOU OFTEN ASK

FAQ

Most questions come down to two things – what applies, and who’s personally liable. Here are the answers we give most often.

Polish labor law distinguishes employment from B2B contracting based on substance, not contract label. Key employment indicators: fixed working hours, subordination to the employer’s direction, required personal performance, and integration into the employer’s organization. If a B2B relationship has these features, Polish courts and labor inspectors can reclassify it as employment — regardless of what the contract says.

The reform (effective July 8, 2026) gives the Polish State Labor Inspectorate (PIP) the power to issue binding decisions reclassifying B2B contracts as employment relationships — including for contracts already in place when the law comes into force. Companies with B2B arrangements that look like employment will face retroactive social insurance contributions, employment rights liability, and potential fines. Proactive audit and restructuring is significantly cheaper than reactive remediation.

No – not in the way US employers are accustomed to. Polish employment law requires documented cause for termination of indefinite-term employment contracts. For fixed-term contracts, termination can be cleaner but still requires a valid termination clause. The process involves written notice, advance notice periods (up to three months depending on tenure), and often trade union consultation. Wrongful dismissal claims can seek reinstatement or six to twelve months’ compensation.

Polish ZUS treatment of equity depends heavily on the structure. Shares acquired below market value may be treated as employment income – subject to ZUS and PIT (income tax) at the time of acquisition. Options may defer taxation to exercise. Phantom equity (cash-settled) is taxed as income. RSUs from US parent plans need specific analysis. The structure significantly affects the employee’s effective compensation and your company’s employer social insurance costs.

Yes. A Polish employee working in Poland under a contract governed by Polish law is subject to the full Polish Labor Code — regardless of where the employer is headquartered.