Zakres elastyczności stron stosunku pracy w kształtowaniu elementów treści umowy o pracę

Abstract

This study paper analyses the regulations applicable to the text of an employment contract. Consideration is given to the type of contract, contract conclusion date, work commencement date, nature of the work, location of the workplace, compensation for work, working time limits, allowances due for business travel, and specific regulations concerning the working time. The purpose of the research was to find out whether the parties to an employment contract enjoy flexibility in determining the foregoing contractual issues or if their liberty in this respect is largely restricted. The article embraces the amendment to the Labour Law regulations pertinent to fixed-term employment contracts, which took effect on 22 February 2016, as well as the amendment to the National Minimum Wage Act, in place as of 1 January 2017. The legal-dogmatic analysis has demonstrated that an explicit conclusion with regard to the flexibility of the parties involved in an employment relationship in setting out certain elements of the employment contract is impossible to reach. For some components, the leeway is greater (e.g. the nature of the work, the location of the workplace), while for other elements, it is more restricted (e.g. the type of contract, compensation for work). Also, the sources of such restrictions are dissimilar – Labour Law regulations, provisions within other primary and secondary legislation, provisions of collective labour agreements and other collective agreements, or, finally, the very nature of the employment relationship.