Issuing employment certificates for fixed-term contracts

Upon termination of work for one employer, the employee should receive an employment certificate from him, failure to issue this document is an offense punishable by a fine of PLN 1,000 to 30,000. Check how the work certificate is issued in the case of fixed-term contracts.

Issue of an employment certificate after termination of employment

An employment certificate is a document summarizing the period of employment with a given employer. It contains data necessary to determine entitlements when employed in another workplace or register with a poviat labor office as an unemployed person, as well as information necessary to determine entitlements in the field of social insurance.

After termination of employment, which may result from termination or expiry of the employment relationship, the employer is required to issue an employment certificate to the employee. It should be issued immediately after the termination of employment. In such a situation, the employer is obliged to have a prepared employment certificate in order to be able to issue it to the employee at any time.

Exception If it is impossible to issue an employment certificate to an employee immediately after the termination or expiry of the employment relationship, the employer is obliged to deliver it to the employee within 7 days of the termination of the employment relationship. In this case, the employment certificate may be sent by post or otherwise served.

Employment certificate after two years of employment

If the employee remains employed by the same employer on the basis of an employment contract for a trial period, a fixed-term employment contract or an employment contract for the time of performing a specific job, the employer is obliged to issue him with an employment certificate covering completed periods of employment on the basis of such contracts concluded within 24 months from the conclusion of the first of them.

Example 1.

The employee was employed at XYZ from July 1, 2012 to September 30, 2012 under a trial period employment contract, and then from October 1, 2012 to September 30, 2013 under a fixed-term employment contract. After the end of this period, the employer decided not to sign another employment contract and issued the employee with an employment certificate covering the full period of employment from July 1, 2012. until September 30, 2013

Certificate of employment after a contract for a longer period

In the event of termination of employment of an employee who was employed by the same employer under the concluded employment relationship for a trial period, for a specified period or for the duration of a specific job, the employer issues one collective employment certificate. The regulations do not mention the need for continuity of contracts, so the employer may issue a collective employment certificate if there is a break between fixed-term contracts, but it should not be long.

Important! Longer breaks between fixed-term contracts with a given employer result in the need to immediately issue a certificate of employment, they are treated as termination of employment.

 

If a fixed-term employment contract, signed before the end of 24 months from the first contract, is terminated or expires, the employment certificate should be issued on the date of termination or expiry of the contract. It should be emphasized that the issue of an employment certificate for the period of employment covering employment contracts that have already been terminated is obligatory.

Example 2.

The employee was employed at XYZ from July 1, 2012 to September 30, 2012 under a probationary contract and then from October 1, 2012 to September 30, 2013 under a fixed-term employment contract. After the end of this period, the employer decided to conclude another fixed-term employment contract with this employee from October 1, 2013 to September 30, 2014.

Issuing an employment certificate after the end of the first fixed-term employment contract is not obligatory and also after 24 months from employment. The employer is obliged to issue an employment certificate to the employee after the end of the second fixed-term employment contract, because during its duration the period of 24 months has expired from the conclusion of the first contract.

Issue of an employment certificate at the request of an employee

After the end of each employment contract (for a trial period, specified period, for the duration of a specific job), the employee has the right to submit a written application for an employment certificate with the employer.He is entitled to a similar right in the case of a request for the total period of employment falling before the date of submitting the request for the issue of employment certificates. In such a situation, the employer is obliged to issue the employee with an employment certificate within 7 days from the date of submitting the application.