In accordance with the guidelines of the Labour Code, a worker who has worked for at least 6 hours is entitled to a one 15-minute break, which is included in working time and for which he is entitled to full remuneration. Importantly, this break should be used in its entirety, the employee can not share it at his discretion. Young workers are entitled to a 30-minute uninterrupted break included in working time, provided that they work longer than 4.5 hours. The employer may allow employees a longer break included in working time. Such rules shall be taken into account in the company’s labour regulations or in a collective agreement.

According to the Regulation of the Minister of Labour and Social Policy of 1 December 1998 on health and safety at work in positions equipped with on-screen monitors, the employee is entitled to a 5-minute break after an hour of work at the computer. Please note that this break is a break from work in front of the computer, and during this time you should perform other activities on the premises of the office, for example, segregate letter shipments. Moreover, this break can not be accumulated – the employee can not choose the entire 20 minutes in the last hour of work.

In accordance with Article 132(1) of the K.p., 'The worker shall be entitled to at least 11 hours of uninterrupted rest at any age’. In the course of remote work, the proportions between work and household chores are often disturbed. For example, an employee in the middle of the day goes to an office or bank for private purposes, and joins remote work late in the evening. He opens the computer again in the morning. Although the total working time is correct, in the end this means that he was not provided with 11 hours of uninterrupted rest. This is one of the shortcomings of working from home.

It is very important to communicate on the line superior – subordinate. Ideally, the employer should specify the time frame within which the worker should work on a given day and take a break within those hours. For example, if your employer’s guidelines are from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, an employee who wants to work after 4 p.m. should report it to their supervisor and ask for permission to overtime. If, on the other hand, flexible working hours are preferred in a given workplace, it is important to establish clear rules in this regard. For example, an employee can perform some of their duties by 4 p.m., then pick up the children from the crèche, and take a few hours remaining to complete their time, do so later. However, it is important that every departure from the job is notified to the employer. There is a risk that an accident will occur in the course of dealing with private duties and the circumstances will then be crucial in the accident proceedings.

In Poland, full-time work averages 40 hours a week, or 8 hours a day. During this time, the employee is obliged to perform his work and duties solely, except, of course, outside his time. According to labour law, the employer has the right to monitor his employee. It is true that this  applies to teleworking, which is something related. Teleworking is continuous, systematic. Remote work, on the other hand, is performed only for a certain period of time, e.g. currently during a pandemic. Before the coronavirus pandemic in Polish law, remote work, or so-called home office, was not regulated. In the current situation, the legal basis is the so-called Anti-Crisis Shield 4.0.

Currently, the supervisor may invoke Article 3 of the Act of 2 March 2020 on special arrangements related to the prevention, prevention and eradication of COVID-19, other communicable diseases and the crisis situations caused by them, which indicates that the employer has the right to instruct the employee to keep records of the activities performed. Such records should take into account, in particular, the description of the activities performed and the date and time of their execution.

There are several ways to monitor remote work and task progress. The first is employee reports – something that has been in place in workplaces for years. The second option is to check in, for example, in a corporate chat to inform your supervisor that work starts on a given day. The third option is to use a dedicated tool – there are many programs on the market that monitor working time and its effectiveness.

In conclusion, the opportunity to work from home is attractive to many employees. In the era of a pandemic, this type of work is recommended for safety reasons. However, there are many doubts, because Polish legislation, apart from the so-called Anti-Crisis Shield, still does not regulate remote work. That is why it is so important for the employer to set rules, to include them in the rules of remote work, and to communicate clearly and understandablely for employees.

Source: https://www.bhp-center.com.pl/przerwa-podczas-pracy-biurowej-i-zdalnej-podstawowe-roznice/