Employers to be informed about employees’ vaccination status

by Małgorzata Kolasa-Dorosz and Laura Sopata

2 September 2021

The Ministry of Health has announced that it has started work on a bill amending the so-called COVID Act. The bill envisages solutions enabling employers to obtain from their employees information on whether they: have been vaccinated, have recovered from COVID-19, or hold a valid certificate of negative SARS-CoV-2 test result.
 

What information will be available to businesses?

The draft bill says that companies will be authorised to know whether their employees, or even customers, are vaccinated. Such information will enable employers to implement security measures in the workplace.
 
According to the bill, the employer will be entitled to change the job or workplace of employees who tell him that they are not vaccinated, have never been infected or hold a valid certificate showing that they are infected with SARS-CoV-2. Such employees may be assigned tasks that do not involve direct contact with other people (e.g. customer service). The employer will be allowed to post non-vaccinated employees outside their regular place of work or give them another job for a remuneration appropriate for that job. Another option being considered is to grant unpaid leave to such employees.
 
The bill also allows companies to request the above information from their job candidates before signing the employment contract.
 
Additionally, the bill should also enable companies to check whether their current or potential contractors have been vaccinated, have been infected with COVID-19, or hold a valid negative COVID-19 test certificate. Information about the employees' or contractors' health status will be made available through the mobile application provided by Centrum e-Zdrowia (e-Health Centre) or certificates issued by medical professionals.