Clauses restricting competitive activity in agreements with game developers
A game is only as good as its creators. Therefore, it is in the interest of game development companies to keep their staff happy, so they don’t even think about switching to the competition. In addition, however, it is worth taking preventive measures, e.g. including clauses in contracts preventing the poaching of valuable employees and independent contractors.
Crunch before the release of a game. What does employment law say?
Nerves, feverish analysis, and refinement of details are typical crunch elements before a video game is released on the market. Crunch, a period of intense work, usually shortly before the launch of a game, involves long working days, nights and weekends in front of a computer, sometimes on tasks the worker has never performed before. Can the employer order the employee to work under such conditions, and must the employee comply?
Cause of employment contract termination cannot be modified
Employment contract termination is one of the most important legal actions in relation to an employer – employee, as it terminates the legal relationship binding them. An employer must diligently prepare for termination of an employment contract. Any error on his part may result in the need to pay compensation to an employee or even to reinstate the employee at work on previous terms.
Outsourcing in game development: Is it worth it?
In the video game sector it is often necessary to draw on specialised knowledge from various fields (e.g. for graphic design projects). In such cases, it is increasingly common to cooperate with external experts by outsourcing certain processes. This form of cooperation carries many advantages, but if the conditions are not carefully framed it can create serious risks for the game development company.
Remote work and “employer of record”: Employment in the video game industry
The game development industry knows no boundaries, and often attracts workers from all over the world. But employment and immigration regulations pose a barrier to drawing on the resources of the global labour market, particularly when a game development studio considers employing persons in Poland who are citizens of countries outside the EU, the EEA, or Switzerland. However, new non-standard forms of work help overcome the difficulties in hiring foreigners, and are worth considering for roles such as programmers, graphic designers, sound engineers, script writers, and game testers.
Poland: Current travel restrictions
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Poland adopted regulations temporarily restricting entry to Poland of non-Polish citizens.
Epidemic threat and quarantine obligation
On 13 March 2020, an executive regulation of the Minister of Health on the declaration of an epidemiological threat in the Republic of Poland entered into force. It indicates that in the period from 14 March 2020 until further notice a state of an epidemiological threat is declared in the Republic of Poland due to infections from the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The result is, inter alia, suspension of international air and rail connections and a ban on foreigners entering the Republic of Poland. In turn, each person crossing the state border to return to its place of residence or stay in the Republic of Poland must submit to a mandatory 14-day quarantine. Its basis differs from general rules in this respect.
Employers and new regulations on COVID-19
On 8 March 2020, the Law on special arrangements for the prevention and combating of COVID-19, other infectious diseases and crisis situations caused by them (Crisis Act) took effect. It introduced a number of provisions setting rules and procedures for preventing and combating infection and spread of the COVID-19 infectious disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus as well as tasks of public administrations in this regard.
Is it now time for employment contracts in electronic form?
As of 1 January 2019, amendments to the Labour Code came into force allowing employee files to be kept in electronic form. This raises the obvious question of whether employment contracts can be in electronic form as well.
Employee capital plans mean new obligations for employers
The Employee Capital Plan Act, which came into force on 1 January 2019, is one of the most important legislative developments of 2019. This is especially true for employers, as they need to prepare for the new obligations and further expenditure. On the other hand, employee capital plans (ECP) could substantially increase Poles’ savings and be an additional source of income in retirement.
Posting workers to Poland? Learn about your duties before the Polish authorities
The Act on Posting of Employees for Performance of Services of 10 June 2016, implementing the Posting of Workers Directive (96/71/EC) and the Enforcement Directive (2014/67/EU), imposes a number of obligations on foreign employers posting their employees to Poland which may prove difficult to implement in practice.
Can shops operate on 12 November 2018?
The President of Poland signed a law establishing 12 November 2018 a public holiday. It has only a few articles and deals with an individual case, and yet it gives rise to a discussion as whether 12 November 2018 is covered by trade restrictions. Despite an opposite position of the National Labour Inspectorate and the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy, it seems that shops may be opened if retail staff is employed on the basis of civil law contracts, works in shifts or there are other exceptions to the work ban on non-working days as specified in Art. 151[10] of the Labour Code.
