At the present time, when both employers and employees have been forced to adapt their working conditions to remote work, many of them (including clients of our PRWT accounting office) are wondering whether the right solution is to change the working time system to taskbased working time system. Since employees work at home, they can work at different times of the day, not necessarily within the previously strictly defined framework. Is that
sure ?

The task-based working time system introduces some flexibility as to the time when the employee will perform the tasks entrusted to him. However, it should be remembered that a task-based working time system may be introduced if the conditions specified in the labor law are met, i.e. the type of work, work organization or place of work. The occurrence of these conditions must be permanent.

When can a task-based working time system be used? It is possible to use this system when:

– it is not necessary to specify the hours in which the work is to be performed,

– the demand for work cannot be predicted in advance,

– there are difficulties in controlling the work performed by the employee,

– performance of work depends only on the individual contribution of a given employee

The employer may oblige the employee to appear at the workplace on certain days / hours (e.g. to attend a meeting or training course).

Task-based working time does not mean, however, that the employee is at the employer’s disposal all day long. The assumption of this system is that the employer does not keep records of the employee’s working time, but only accounts for the tasks performed. The duration of work (in principle, determined by the employee) should cover 8 hours a day and 40 hours a week. Task-related working time cannot be used to bypass the provisions on overtime work. Therefore, the employer is obliged to agree with the employee on the scope of tasks to be performed by the employee at a given time (day, week or month). Of course, the clarification of this scope may take place before each subsequent working month.

Thus, the mere performance of work remotely does not prejudge the possibility of introducing a task-based working time system.