A situation that often occurs in the work environment is receiving additional commands and tasks by the employee. Occasionally, they may go slightly beyond what is included in the contract of employment and thus cause concern to the worker. People who work in a given position and know their responsibilities might feel confused when receiving an order that goes beyond that scale.

The most common scenario is when the employer or supervisor assigns additional duties or tasks to the employee. But when should a person worry?

From the information one can find in the Polish Labour Code,  the instructions issued by the supervisor must be consistent with the type of work undertaken by the given employee
and his/her qualifications. However, special attention should be paid to the safety of the employee and the morality of the instructions. The employee should not perform dubious moral or illegal duties without any moment of reflection. The main reason should be a warning against possible liability in the future and even lead to dismissal from work.

Therefore, it is possible to refuse, an experienced accountant might do it in the situation when she is assigned a task that is beyond her/his competence or unrelated in any way to accounting
and finance, which she/he deals with on a day-to-day basis. If an inappropriate order is given, the employee may refuse and report the problem to the employer or go to court and ask
the State Labour Inspectorate for help.

What if an employee receives an order that is part of his or her duties, but which might create a situation that is dangerous to his or her health or even life?

It is common knowledge that in order for an employee to receive compensation, the event that has occurred must be classified as an accident at work. Therefore, it must meet the following criteria: be an emergency, caused by an external cause, and cause injury or death in connection with the performance of work activities.

However, this may cause complications if a person who works in one position performs work unrelated to his or her job, which results in an accident. Then proving that the incident was
an accident can be difficult.

When can an employer delegate an employee to execute a command?

According to the law, the employer has the right to assign tasks to the employee, but following strict rules:

• If the working conditions meet safety standards;
• If occupational hygiene will be maintained;
• If the task does not pose a threat to health or life;
• If the task will occur no longer than 3 months;
• If their performance does not reduce the salary and corresponds to the qualifications of the employee;

Any case of violation of the above-mentioned assumptions should be immediately reported to the employer, and if it does not bring the expected results, reported to the duly delegated public institutions.