Thanks to Bee Talents, an IT/Tech recruitment agency, for spreading this report further!

3 Types of Employment Contracts

“We have 3 types of contracts: employment contracts, contracts of mandate and B2B (consultancy) contracts.

The main differences are based on how close a relationship you have with the employer, and the division of tax, insurance obligations between employee & employer.

B2B Consultancy contracts are very popular for engineering market – the candidates know their worth, pay less insurance, less tax and have greater flexibility. If you’re hiring for tech, you’re probably hiring B2B”

Communication

“Candidates from Poland may not be familiar with chitchatting, especially if they didn’t have previous international experience. They may be surprised if you ask them “how are you?” – some may even start telling you how they have a headache, how their cat was vomiting this morning etc and treat the ‘small talk’ like a genuine question.

We also like to complain. But this doesn’t mean there is something bad happening or that we are unhappy, or that we want to make some changes, or that we won’t do the job – it’s kind of like our version of small talk.

Polish people can also be formal in communication, especially written and especially in the beginning of a relationship. Don’t worry about this – it is because Polish language enforces rather formal communication with strangers and we tend to copy that into English”

Candidate Engagement

“We Poles may be less responsive and have many doubts at the beginning but it’s only because we as a nation need as much information as we can before we fully engage in some topic.

Also Polish candidates are generally afraid to speak English, even if they have completed a lot of courses – usually the English level is quite good so this is a matter of confidence – please remember this when talking to a candidate!

As ever, patience, genuine care for the candidate, long term relationship building – will go a long way”

Visas for ‘Neighbouring Countries’

“As a member of the EU and Schengen area, Polish recruiters  have no legal problem hiring any citizen from another EU (or in the Schengen area) country, though those workers will need to register in the local town hall within 3 months of arriving in the country. Poland also has special rules for citizens from so called ‘Neighbouring Countries (Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, Armenia, Moldova & Georgia) in which you can hire citizens from there with little difficulty. It is most popularly used for Ukraine and Belarus candidates though. Things can get much more complicated for non-EU, non-neighbouring countries – people must wait up to 8 months for working visa in “Wojewódzki Urząd Pracy”

Mandatory Medical Examination

“Before you can be accepted for a job, you have to get a medical examination, This can surprise foreigners but is standard practice in Poland. I have never had a situation where someone was denied work due to a medical exam but I suppose it can happen

Also, you will need to retake your medical exam if you take a prolonged absence from work due to illness or injury. I believe it is 6 weeks, then you have to retake the medical exam”

Holidays allocated according to Seniority

“In Poland, how many holidays you get is calculated mainly through your experience i.e the more senior you are, the more days holiday you receive. Broadly, you will fall into two categories – under 10 years and over 10 years experience. 

For example, if you have less than 10 years of experience (including studies), you will receive 20 days of holidays per year; more than 10 years experience, you will receive 26 days of holidays per year. College/Uni education counts as 8 years, so if you’ve graduated, you get your 6 extra vacation days only after 2 years of employment. Also; this only works for regular employment contracts, not b2b or contract of mandate mentioned earlier in the guide.

This allocation does not include mandatory public holidays like Easter, Christmas and so on”

Internationalisation

“It is more common that companies in Poland accepts “western” organization culture – more open, honest, global approach. I would say now that company culture in Poland is very similar to the culture in an average western company of a similar size 

Also there is a sense that companies are in transition state – from hierarchical to flat, based on maturation of the business. Extensive internationalisation of the polish workforce, many international companies in Poland, large highly skilled diaspora, many now returning to Poland to set up businesses, is making this trend”

The Catholic Church

“It’s important to understand the impact of the Catholic religion on the Polish society. It has become more powerful during the communist regime, when the Catholic church was home to the opposition. It has been entangled in the politics ever since, and has impact over legislation and social attitudes. You will undoubtedly feel it’s impact on the employment world as well if you’re recruiting in Poland.

A good example is the “no trade Sundays” law, which prohibits opening shops on Sundays, with a few exceptions every year. A lot of religious holidays are also national holidays, with businesses closed across the country”

Kasia Tang, Recruitment Trainer, Kasia Tang

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Thanks to Bee Talents, an IT/Tech recruitment agency, for spreading this report further!