Young Workers in Poland: OSH Rules Employers Must Follow

Hiring a 16-year-old apprentice is not the same as hiring an adult on a shorter contract. Under Polish law a young worker is a separate, specially protected category of employee, and the employer takes on a set of duties that reach well beyond the standard employment relationship: a capped working day, a ban on overtime and night work, a restricted list of tasks the person may perform, and an obligation to make room for their schooling. Get it wrong and the State Labour Inspectorate (PIP) treats it as an offence against employee rights – with fines that rose sharply in 2026. Here is what employers in Poland actually need to have in place.

Who counts as a young worker in Poland?

A young worker (pracownik młodociany) is a person who has turned 15 but is not yet 18. Age alone, however, is not enough to permit employment. Before such a person can start work, two further conditions must be met: they must have completed at least eight-year primary school, and they must produce a medical certificate confirming that work of the given type does not threaten their health.

There is one exception. Where those requirements are not met, a young person may still be employed – but solely for the purpose of vocational preparation, in the form of training for the performance of specified work. This is not a loophole for ordinary hiring; it is a narrowly defined educational route, and the paperwork has to reflect that.

On what terms can a young worker be employed?

Polish law recognises two lawful bases: employment for the purpose of vocational preparation, or employment to perform light work under a contract of employment. Anything outside those two routes is, in practice, an irregularity waiting to be found during an inspection.

„Light work” is not left to the employer’s own judgement either. The list of light work permitted in the company must be drawn up by the employer and then approved by the competent district labour inspector and by the occupational medicine physician, and set out in the work regulations. Light work must not endanger the young person’s health, safety or development, and must not interfere with their schooling.

Alongside this, the employer must:

• provide the young worker with the care and assistance they need to adjust to performing the work properly;
• keep a register of young workers;
• enable the young worker to complete their compulsory education, including theoretical training;
• remember that young workers employed under a contract of employment are covered by social insurance on the same terms as any other employee.

And whoever the company hires, one step never changes: before anyone starts performing their duties, they must complete initial OSH training. With a young worker this is not a formality to be signed off in five minutes – it is often that person’s first ever contact with a workplace.

Working time of young workers – the rules employers get wrong most often

This is where most inspection findings come from, because the limits are tighter than many managers assume and they are not open to negotiation with the employee:

• A young worker may not work more than 8 hours a day – and no more than 6 hours a day if they are under 16.
• Time spent in education counts as working time, to the extent resulting from the compulsory school curriculum, regardless of whether the classes fall within working hours.
• If the daily working time exceeds 4.5 hours, the young worker is entitled to an uninterrupted 30-minute break, counted as working time.
• A young worker may not be employed on overtime or at night. Night time for a young worker falls between 22:00 and 6:00; in specific cases – in particular a young person who has not completed eight-year primary school or who is not yet 15 – it falls between 20:00 and 6:00.
• The break covering night time must last at least 14 uninterrupted hours.
• Each week the young worker is entitled to at least 48 hours of uninterrupted rest, which must include Sunday.

Two of these catch employers out particularly often: counting school hours into working time, and the 6-hour cap for workers under 16. A schedule that looks entirely lawful on paper can breach both at once as soon as the young person’s timetable is added to it.

Work prohibited to young workers

Young workers may not be employed on prohibited work. The catalogue is set out in the Regulation of the Council of Ministers of 24 August 2004 on the list of work prohibited to young workers and the conditions for their employment on some of that work. It covers, among other things, work involving excessive physical strain, exposure to harmful chemical and biological agents, noise and vibration, work at height, and work carrying a high risk of accident.

There is a limited exception: some of that work may be performed by a young worker over the age of 16, where it is necessary for their vocational preparation – and only on the conditions laid down in the regulation. Before relying on it, it is worth confirming that the occupational risk assessment for that workstation genuinely accounts for a young worker, and not for an experienced adult employee.

What does a breach of young workers’ rights cost in 2026?

Breaching the rules on employing young workers is an offence against employee rights under Article 281 of the Polish Labour Code. Since 8 July 2026 the penalties have been considerably higher than before: the fine reaches up to PLN 60,000, and up to PLN 90,000 for a repeat offence. A labour inspector may also impose an on-the-spot fine of up to PLN 5,000, or up to PLN 10,000 where the violation recurs.

Worth remembering: with young workers the financial penalty is rarely the whole story. An accident involving a 16-year-old is examined far more closely – by the inspectorate, by the insurer and, sooner or later, by the parents. That is why the documentation, the schedule and the workstation assignment need to hold up before anything happens, not afterwards. If PIP has already announced a visit, our preparation for a State Labour Inspectorate inspection is a sensible place to start.

You may also want to read about the consequences of failing to provide OSH training and about compensation for a workplace accident in Poland – we cover these topics regularly on our blog.

If your company employs young workers – or is about to take on apprentices for the first time – it pays to have the working time, the list of light work and the risk assessment reviewed by someone who does this every day. EHS Consulting supports employers across Poland with OSH supervision, documentation and training. Get in touch and we will tell you what still needs putting in order.