The Self-Employed on Site: Your OSH Duties
"He's got his own firm, he answers for himself" - Article 304 of the Labour Code says otherwise. Your OSH duties towards B2B crews on site.
"He's not my employee, he's got his own firm, he answers for himself." That's the most popular belief in Polish construction - and one of the riskiest. Sites are full of one-person businesses: a tiler on B2B, an electrician with his own firm, a helper "on invoice". As long as nothing happens, it's comfortable for everyone. The problem starts when a PIP (Polish Labour Inspectorate) inspector walks onto the site or, worse, when the self-employed man falls off the scaffolding. Then it turns out the Labour Code has specific provisions for this situation, and "he's got his own firm" doesn't close the topic. In this post I explain what OSH duties you have towards the self-employed on your site, what to put in the contract and what documentation to keep. At BudoReady you'll find ready-made OSH documentation templates that cover people off the payroll too.
Key points at a glance
- Article 304 of the Labour Code: you must ensure safe and healthy working conditions also for people running a business who perform work in your workplace or a place you designate.
- The self-employed person on your site must in turn follow the site's OSH rules (Article 304(1)).
- When people from different firms work in one place, an OSH coordinator is needed (Article 208) - also when the "firm" is a one-person business.
- Sham B2B is a separate risk: if the arrangement has the features of an employment relationship, Article 22 kicks in - and the PIP looks at this ever more closely.
- The contract with a self-employed person should regulate OSH: training, medical checks, PPE, submission to site rules.
What the Labour Code really says about people off the payroll
Chapter X of the Labour Code doesn't apply only to salaried employees. Article 304 obliges the employer to ensure safe and healthy working conditions also for individuals performing work on a basis other than an employment relationship - including those running their own business - if the work takes place in the workplace or in a place designated by the employer. The site you organise is exactly such a place.
It works both ways: Article 304(1) obliges people working on a non-employment basis to apply the rules of Article 211 accordingly - meaning, among other things, knowing the OSH rules, using protective equipment and submitting to the site's regime. A self-employed person is therefore not a "free electron" on your site. They are a participant in a safety system that you organise.
Who answers for what - a map of the situation
| Situation | Who answers for OSH |
|---|---|
| A self-employed person works on your site, under your organisation | You ensure safe conditions (Art. 304); they follow the site rules (Art. 304(1)) |
| Several firms and self-employed people in one place | The employers appoint an OSH coordinator (Art. 208); coordination removes liability from no one |
| The self-employed person works like an employee: your hours, your supervision, your tools | Risk of the relationship being deemed employment (Art. 22) - with all consequences, OSH included |
| An accident involving a self-employed person on your site | The conditions you provided are examined; failings in site organisation fall on you |
Liability between firms on one site is developed in the post subcontractor OSH responsibility, and the coordinator rules in the post OSH coordinator on site.
Training and medical checks for the self-employed - how to handle it
With a salaried employee it's obvious: initial training, on-the-job instruction, medical examinations. With a self-employed person the regulations provide no automatic mechanism, but they give you a tool: since you answer for safe conditions on the site, you can - and should - make entry to the site conditional on meeting the requirements. In practice this is done in the contract.
What to write into the contract
- Current OSH training - an obligation to hold valid training and show the document before entering the site.
- Medical certificate - of no contraindications to the works performed, especially work at height.
- Familiarisation with site rules - confirmed by signature: the risk assessment for the works, instructions, IBWR where required.
- PPE - who provides the helmet, harness, footwear; even if they do, you still enforce its use on site.
- Submission to the OSH coordinator and the person supervising the works in safety matters.
Large general contractors do exactly the same to you before letting you onto their site - we described it in the post OSH requirements on big developers' sites. Worth bringing that standard to your own yard.
Sham self-employment - a growing risk
A separate front: if your "B2B subcontractor" works your hours, under your direction, with your tools and only for you, then under Article 22 of the Labour Code the arrangement may be deemed an employment relationship - regardless of what the contract is called. The consequences include back social security contributions and employee entitlements, and on the OSH side - the employer's full duty package, retroactively. Legality of employment is in the PIP's standing scope of inspection, and after the reform the inspectorate got stronger tools and better targeting - described in the post the PIP reform 2026.
This doesn't mean B2B in construction is banned - it's legal and common. The point is that form must match substance: the contractor's independence, their own decisions on how to do the work, real responsibility for the result.
Documents worth having when the self-employed are on site
- Contracts with the OSH clauses above.
- Confirmations of familiarisation with site rules - signed and dated statements.
- Copies of training and medical certificates - or declarations of holding them.
- Written appointment of the OSH coordinator - when people from different firms work together.
- ORZ and IBWR - covering works performed also by people off the payroll.
Frequently asked questions
Does a self-employed person on my site need OSH training?
The regulations don't directly oblige you to train a self-employed person like an employee. You do, however, answer for safe working conditions on the site (Art. 304), and they must follow the OSH rules. In practice the standard - and the safest solution - is to require current OSH training in the contract and to familiarise everyone entering the site with the site rules, against signature.
Who answers if a self-employed person has an accident on the site?
An accident involving a business owner isn't an accident at work in the employment sense, but the authorities will examine the conditions the site organiser provided. If the organisation failed - missing collective protection, non-handed-over scaffolding, no coordination - liability can fall on you, up to criminal liability for exposing a person to danger.
Do I need an OSH coordinator if only self-employed people are on site?
Article 208 speaks of employers whose employees work simultaneously in the same place. In construction practice, when several entities - including one-person businesses - operate on a site, appointing a coordinator and writing down cooperation rules is the standard expected by inspectors and general contractors. It costs nothing and puts liability in order.
What do I risk with sham B2B arrangements?
If the arrangement has the features of employment (subordination, designated place and time, pay for diligent performance), it can be deemed an employment relationship under Article 22. The consequences include back contributions, employee claims and full employer liability, OSH included. After the PIP reform, the inspectorate targets firms for such inspections more effectively.
One document set for the whole site - the Shield package
ORZ, instructions, familiarisation confirmations, training records, registers - OSH documentation should cover everyone working on your site, not just the payroll. You can build it yourself or take ready-made templates and adapt them to your crew.
The Shield package (27 files) is the full OSH documentation set for a micro construction firm under PKD 43 (the Polish business activity code) - in Polish and Ukrainian. Working with subcontractors on particularly hazardous works? Premium (45 files) adds ready-made IBWR for 6 types of works - the document every bigger site will demand from you. See BudoReady packages and put OSH in order for the whole crew - salaried and invoiced alike.
This article is informational and does not replace legal advice or consultation with an OSH specialist. Document templates require individual adaptation to the realities of your company and specific job posts, and the current legal position is worth verifying as of the date of use.