What must an employer bear in mind when employing minors?

🚨 What does an employer have to bear in mind when employing minors?

On the business portal Puls Biznesu you can already read an article by Justyna Klupa discussing the legal aspects of employing minors. In general, the employment of minors is forbidden unless the exceptions set out in the legislation are met. The first exception concerns the employment of minors on the basis of a vocational training contract. The second allows them to work under an ‘ordinary’ employment contract if they are qualified. In both cases, however, the regulations introduce certain restrictions. 📚

Our labour law expert, legal advisor Paweł Kempa-Dymiński, emphasises in his commentary that, according to the law, a juvenile may be employed in this way only to perform light work and with many other restrictions on the manner in which they are provided.

What are the basic conditions for the employment of juveniles?

This question was answered by our labour law expert, legal counsel Natalia Wojciechowska-Chałupińska, who pointed out in her commentary,
that the employer should be aware of certain limitations;
in practice, he will only be able to employ such juveniles who have completed eight years of primary school and have a medical certificate stating that the work of a given type does not endanger their health. In addition, both conditions must be met together (with some exceptions for juveniles who have not completed primary school, subject to additional conditions specified by law).

Ms Wojciechowska-Chałupińska also explained the rules of employing such persons for the purpose of professional preparation, which are regulated by the Regulation of the Council of Ministers, indicating in the commentary that the preparation may include learning a profession or apprenticeship and may be conducted only by a person with the relevant qualifications, most often the employer, but also another employee of the company, if he or she also has these qualifications.