A mid-sized logistics company in the Mazowieckie region faced a difficult restructuring in late 2025. After a contract with its main client collapsed, management decided to reduce headcount by 22 employees. The finance team calculated severance using base salary only – excluding quarterly bonuses, shift allowances, and overtime supplements. Three employees challenged the calculation. The resulting dispute threatened to delay the entire redundancy programme by months.

Under Polish employment law, severance pay on collective or individual redundancy is calculated on the basis of the employee's full remuneration, not base salary alone. The ustawa o szczególnych zasadach rozwiązywania z pracownikami stosunków pracy z przyczyn niedotyczących pracowników (Act on Collective Redundancies) sets the entitlement at one, two, or three months' remuneration depending on length of service, subject to a statutory cap of 15 times the minimum wage. Errors in the calculation base expose the employer to back-payment claims, interest, and potential labour-court proceedings.

This case study walks through the background, the legal strategy our team applied, the process of correcting the calculations, and the transferable lessons for any Polish employer facing redundancy. The structure follows four stages: factual background, legal analysis, resolution process, and key takeaways.

What went wrong in the background calculation?

The company's HR team relied on payslip line items labelled "basic salary" when building the redundancy spreadsheet. That approach is understandable but legally incorrect. Polish employment law defines remuneration for severance purposes broadly: it covers all components paid regularly, including variable bonuses paid at fixed intervals and allowances tied to the job rather than to individual performance. The quarterly bonus in this case was paid every three months without exception – making it a regular component.

The three challenging employees had each received the quarterly bonus for at least two consecutive years. One employee, a senior dispatcher, had also received a night-shift allowance amounting to roughly 18 percent of his monthly pay. Excluding these components reduced his calculated severance by nearly PLN 4,200. For a worker with 11 years of service – entitling him to three months' severance – the undercount was material. The National Labour Inspectorate (Państwowa Inspekcja Pracy, PIP) had already signalled, during a routine audit in summer 2025, that the company's payroll templates did not reflect the full remuneration base.

Management initially resisted correction. The concern was precedent: adjusting three employees' severance might require recalculating all 22. That concern was well-founded – and ultimately the right reason to act quickly rather than delay.

How did the legal strategy address the calculation errors?

Our team at KORDECKI & Partners was engaged in October 2025, shortly after the first formal objection was filed with the company's HR department. The immediate priority was to map every remuneration component across all 22 redundant employees before any severance was paid. That audit took four working days. We identified four categories of undercounted elements: regular quarterly bonuses, shift allowances, on-call supplements, and a transport benefit paid monthly in cash.

We secured a full recalculation resulting in corrected severance amounts across 14 of the 22 employees, with aggregate additional payments exceeding PLN 38,000 for a logistics employer in Mazowieckie (autumn 2025). The legal strategy rested on two pillars. First, voluntary correction before payment avoided any interest liability under the Polish Civil Code, which applies to late wage claims at statutory rates. Second, correcting all affected employees simultaneously removed the risk of selective treatment claims – a distinct risk under anti-discrimination provisions in the Kodeks pracy (Labour Code, KP).

For employees entitled to the EU Blue Card or holding a work permit Poland, severance entitlements are identical to those of Polish nationals under KP. This point matters because the company employed two Ukrainian nationals with valid work permits. Their calculations were corrected on the same basis as all others. Foreign employees sometimes assume their entitlements differ – they do not, once lawfully employed under Polish law.

To discuss how severance calculation applies to your workforce, including employees with a work permit Poland or EU Blue Card status, email info@kordeckipartners.com.

What did the resolution process involve?

Once the audit was complete, we drafted corrected settlement agreements for all 14 affected employees. Each agreement set out the revised calculation base explicitly – listing each remuneration component, the applicable multiplier (one, two, or three months depending on service length), and the final gross amount. Transparency at this stage is important. Employees who understand the calculation are far less likely to challenge it later before the Sąd Rejonowy (District Court) labour division.

The three employees who had originally filed objections accepted the corrected amounts within five working days. None proceeded to court. The remaining 11 affected employees received their corrected severance at the same time, preventing any perception of differential treatment. Total time from our engagement to final payment: 19 working days.

One practical complication arose around the statutory cap. The Act on Collective Redundancies limits severance to 15 times the minimum wage, which in 2025 stood at PLN 4,300 gross per month – giving a cap of PLN 64,500. One senior manager's corrected calculation exceeded that cap. His severance was correctly reduced to PLN 64,500, a point his employment lawyer Warsaw counterpart had initially contested. The cap applies regardless of actual remuneration, and the District Court labour division in Warsaw has consistently upheld it.

For employers with posted workers, the interaction between severance rules and posting regulations adds complexity. Our earlier analysis of posted workers from France to Poland and A1 certificates explains how employment status affects benefit entitlements during cross-border assignments.

What are the transferable lessons for Polish employers?

Four lessons stand out from this matter. They apply to any employer – manufacturing, IT services, or a foreign investor's Polish subsidiary – planning redundancies under Polish law.

  • Audit the full remuneration base before issuing any severance letter. Base salary alone is rarely sufficient.
  • Identify all regular variable components: bonuses paid at fixed intervals, shift supplements, and cash benefits paid monthly all count.
  • Apply the 15-times-minimum-wage cap correctly – it limits the gross severance amount, not the calculation base.
  • Correct errors proactively. Voluntary correction before payment avoids interest and forfeits the employer's strongest litigation defence.
  • Treat foreign employees identically. Work permit holders and EU Blue Card holders have the same statutory severance rights as Polish nationals.

The whistleblower Poland framework also intersects with redundancy. An employee who has reported a legal violation within the meaning of the ustawa o ochronie sygnalistów (Whistleblower Protection Act) enjoys enhanced protection against dismissal. If a redundant employee is also a protected whistleblower, the employer must verify that the redundancy is not causally connected to the report. Failure to do so forfeits the employer's right to rely on the redundancy as a valid reason for termination – an irreversible consequence that can result in reinstatement orders.

Tax structuring considerations also arise when severance exceeds certain thresholds. Our overview of tax structuring for investors entering Poland covers how employment-related payments interact with broader Polish tax obligations. For companies with cross-border workforce arrangements, the rules on posted workers from Luxembourg to Poland and A1 certificates are equally relevant when assessing severance liability across entities.

Every redundancy programme carries a window of opportunity for correction. Once severance is paid and the employment relationship ends, reopening the calculation requires court proceedings – costly, slow, and uncertain. Acting within that window is the single most effective risk-management step available to Polish employers.

Your company's specific severance structure may contain miscalculation risks that only a full remuneration audit can identify. Contact info@kordeckipartners.com for a tailored assessment before payments are made.

Frequently asked questions

Q: Does severance pay in Poland include variable bonuses?

A: Yes, provided the bonus is paid regularly and at fixed intervals. A quarterly bonus paid without exception for two or more consecutive years is treated as a regular remuneration component under Polish employment law. It must be included in the severance calculation base. One-off discretionary bonuses may be excluded, but the distinction requires careful analysis of the payment history and the terms of the employment contract.

Q: How long does the employer have to pay severance after notice expires?

A: Severance becomes due on the date the employment relationship terminates – typically the last day of the notice period. Payment must be made on that date or the following working day at the latest. Delay triggers statutory interest under Polish civil law, currently running at 11.25 percent per annum. There is no grace period, and the obligation cannot be deferred by agreement.

Q: Can a foreign employee on a work permit claim Polish statutory severance?

A: Yes. Any employee lawfully employed under a Polish employment contract – regardless of nationality, work permit status, or EU Blue Card status – is entitled to the same statutory severance rights as a Polish national. The Labour Code does not distinguish by nationality. An employment lawyer Warsaw-based can assist in verifying whether the employment contract and permit conditions affect any ancillary entitlements beyond the statutory minimum.

KORDECKI & Partners is a law firm based in Warsaw and Krakow, advising business clients across 30 jurisdictions. Our team combines expertise in Polish and international law with a practical approach to employment law, redundancy programmes, and workforce restructuring. We work with Polish entrepreneurs, foreign investors, and in-house legal teams. To discuss your situation, contact info@kordeckipartners.com.

Disclaimer: This publication is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The information herein should not be relied upon as a substitute for professional legal counsel tailored to your specific circumstances. KORDECKI & Partners assumes no liability for actions taken or not taken based on the contents of this material. For advice regarding your particular situation, please contact info@kordeckipartners.com.