Keeping personnel records in accordance with the regulations

When managing payroll, human resources and finances, employee records should be kept reliably and scrupulously, as it is an essential element for maintaining compliance with regulations and ensuring the smooth operation of the company. In Poland, labour law and remuneration regulations are strict, and therefore it is particularly important to keep employee records thoroughly.

Employee records – what are the benefits of keeping it reliably?

To comply with the law, reliable employee records must include important details such as hours worked, remuneration paid, taxes withheld and pension contributions paid.

Additionally, accurate HR and payroll records serve as a valuable resource during any disputes that may arise. By providing evidence of hours worked, overtime, information on leave taken and other relevant data, they enable employers to resolve issues quickly and fairly.
Comprehensive payroll records also enable effective financial management – allowing for accurate tracking of wages, taxes and pension contributions. They also allow companies to accurately forecast and budget labour costs, helping with strategic decision-making and financial planning.

Problems in keeping HR and payroll records

As a modern office that handles HR and payroll, we often encounter situations when we are contacted by the companies having problems with keeping employee records properly and in accordance with current law. This happens even in situations when we take over a Client from another accounting firm.
Our experts recently encountered such a situation when taking over the service of a client working on the ENOVA system. During the implementation of a company from the retail industry, employing almost 100 employees in several locations, we noticed that it was struggling with the problem of ensuring compliance of employee records with provisions of law. During the implementation process, our experts quickly noticed inconsistencies in the company’s HR and payroll records. We immediately reported to our client all cases of discrepancies between the actual status and the required status.
Thanks to our experts, our Client decided to commission verification of the HR and payroll records compliance with all legal provisions. Finally, the Client commissioned us to conduct a thorough audit of personal files and determine the compliance of the records contained in the files with the HR and payroll data in the HR system.
We carefully examined records received and identified any gaps or risks. This thorough analysis allowed us to formulate detailed recommendations for the Client so that they could eliminate these problems and improve the compliance of keeping employee files with the provisions of law.
The most important discrepancies we noticed were:

• inconsistency of source document records with data in the system,
• the need to remove documents from employee files, which resulted from modifications of regulations after 2018 (this concerned in particular leave and pay data related to working time, which should be stored separately),
• emerging double employee records,
• inconsistencies in records, i.e. references in documents to contracts that are no longer in force
• discrepancies in dates between the employee’s questionnaire and the employment contract,
• incorrect assignment of documents to individual personal files (in reference to parts A,B,C,D,E – Regulation of the Polish Minister of Family and Social Policy, Journal of Laws of 2023, item 879),
• deficiencies in records of medical examinations as well as occupational health and safety training.

After the completed audit, our Client received a summary report, which included detailed recommendations along with a recovery plan, the aim of which was to achieve full compliance of the records with the provisions of law, as well as adjustments of data in the HR system.
After conducting the audit and completing the implementation, MDDP Outsourcing HR and payroll experts independently manage personnel files, guaranteeing the avoidance of errors in the payroll process.

When keeping employee records, one should collect data in a timely and accurate manner, periodically check employee and payroll records, properly store records as well as stay up to date with modifications of regulations. HR and payroll services are one of the key factors influencing the efficient functioning of the enterprise, creating stable conditions conducive to the company’s development. There are many challenges, so it is most effective to use the support of an experienced external company specialising in this field.

MDDP Outsourcing team is an experienced expert in the field of Payroll, offering HR and payroll services at the highest possible level. Check what benefits we offer to our clients: https://www.mddp-outsourcing.pl/uslugi/kadry-place/. Contact us and ask about our offer!

Author: Kinga Miszyn, Senior Manager Payroll in Warsaw office of MDDP Outsourcing.