“There are few stuntmen like me.” Why do entrepreneurs decide on “voluntary poverty”? The pros and cons of JDG

Paweł returned from holidays on Monday, the plane landed at 5 am. He returned home, took a shower and three hours later he was in the office. He works in the construction industry and, as he says, could not afford the next day of salary loss. He settles with a company on a B2B basis, there is no paid vacation or sick days.

Nobody forced him, a lot of his colleagues have an employment contract. It's about money. – The difference in payment is significant – he explains his decision. When I ask, he says that he earns up to several thousand zlotys more than his colleagues who decided on a full -time job. – There are few stuntmen like me. It remains for me to bother and pray that my health does not get off.

Speaking of health – it is on sick leave. But he went to work anyway. – Thanks to the release I will pay a lower ZUS – he explains.

Mark's situation is different. He also leads sole proprietorshipbut he made an appointment with the employer for 26 days of paid holidays and 10 emergency days “on sick”. They also determined the fixed amount of remuneration. The company has been in the company for eight years, most employees also issue invoices. Could he go full -time? “It seems to me that it would be possible if I insisted, but on the principle” you earn half of what now “, because it costs so much,” he says.

Doesn't he worry about him pension? “I worked on an order before, I don't expect much more than the minimum anyway,” he says. But he adds that he hopes that he will stay thanks renting an apartment after parents.

And the issue of pension may be crucial. The report of the ZUS “voluntary poverty at the end of January. The consequences of the voluntary ZUS for self -employed” indicate that most of them – 99.18 percent. – pays minimal contributions. Is it a matter of small earnings? NO. On average, a self -employed statistical self -employed income than people working full -time. The average income in 2022 in the test analyzed in the test was PLN 12,942.42 per month. At the same time, the average in the national economy was 6346.15 with gross. Self -employed also benefit from a number of concessions. According to the report, at the end of 2022, he did not pay contributions more often than every fifth.

In other words: although entrepreneurs could pay more to the future pension, they only pay as much as they have to – less than employees.

– This data should not be surprising – says Oskar Sobolewski, an expert on the pension market. – Many people employed as part of a sole proprietorship pay such contributions that although they will achieve a work experience necessary to obtain the lowest pension, they will not accumulate sufficient capital – he explains. After obtaining a retirement age (and internship – 25 years for men, 20 – for women) – they will receive a minimum pension to which the state will add.

From March 2025, the minimum benefits will be PLN 1878.91 gross. – Of course, this benefit will be valorized annually, i.e. it will be higher over time, but we are still talking about rather small amounts. If there is no funds in the Social Insurance Fund to pay extra for such pensions, it is necessary to use the subsidy from the state budget – adds Sobolewski.

Simply put, self -employed pay lower contributions than it would appear from their economic situation, and the state will have to pay extra for their benefits; This means redistributing the funds of the whole society in favor of a relatively wealthy group.

The authors of the report also warn against the ideas of some politicians regarding the introduction of the so -called voluntary ZUS for entrepreneurs. The introduction of such a provision would only make such a difficult situation to retire the self -employed and charged the state budget.

From the saving report prepared by Santander Consumer Bank in 2023 as much as 79 percent. Poles did not save on their own, and the only form of security for the future was to pay for them ZUS contributions. – I think that the role of the state is primarily education. Young people often don't think about retirement. If they do not want to pay higher contributions, they should consider investing funds and saving in a different way – indicates Piotr Skierkowski, corporate sales director at the Manpower employment agency.

Poland is in third place among EU countries in terms of percentage of self -employed people – it is 22.8 percent. working men and 13 percent women. – The financial aspect is decisive. Self -employed people simply earn more – emphasizes Piotr Skierkowski.

– We are more and more “Instant”, we want to have everything right away. We put the greatest emphasis on “here and now”. Nobody knows what will happen tomorrow, and the pension especially for young people seems to be an abstract concept – adds Anna Gołębicka, an economist associated with the center of Adam Smith. – That is why employees often decide on a form of employment, which gives them the opportunity to receive a larger amount on hand.

The economist points out that this form was very beneficial some time ago. – It is not always the case now. It depends on many factors even on the amount of revenues – he comments. – Methods for calculating the health premium have changed, the amount of which depends on the income. The micro -entrepreneur must pay VAT, ZUS contributions, health premium and incur additional costs of his activities, such as accounting. He also has to organize it himself. Some people begin to wonder if it still makes sense or if it is better to transfer some of the obligations to the employer.

And the employer has a lot of these obligations towards the employee. – He must provide him with the right workplace, equipment. The employee is better protected, has the right to sickness, maternity leavePPK (Employee Capital Plans – ed.) – lists Gołębicka.

Therefore, self -employment is not only pros. – In addition to the benefits, there are also risk – says Piotr Skierkowski. – Self -employed must take care of his own health and think about retirement issues earlier. Sometimes the company is afraid to provide the contractor with equipment necessary for work, so it also falls on him.

One -man business is popular in many industries. They often focus on design people, e.g. in the IT industry, who do not want to be associated with one employer. – B2B is also gaining popularity in sales. The entrepreneur may establish cooperation with uncompetitive companies and, during one visit to the client, offer him a wide range of products – says Piotr Skierkowski.

The form of employment B2B is often chosen by doctors. – Only about 20-30 percent of medics are employed under a contract of employment – adds Anna Gołębicka. – Medical services are exempt from VAT, remuneration is often at a higher level, so self -employment is more financially profitable for them.

But sole proprietorship is conducted not only by those who want to cooperate with various entities. In practice, it is a frequent run of companies that want to avoid employing employee based on an employment contract. This is the so -called “fictitious self -employment”. The work meets the requirements of full -time employment, but there is no full -time job. Such an employee costs less, he is also less troublesome. – A company employing a company does not have to worry about anything, there are a lot of responsibilities – says Gołębicka.

This is confirmed by Marta, a lawyer who worked at the office for five years, issuing invoices every month. As he says, “a gentleman agreement” was in force in terms of sickness or holidays. “But there were pressure that if your leg hurts, you can work at the computer,” he says.

In Poland, one -man companies that do not employ employees and cooperate only with one entity, there is a minimum of several hundred thousand.

– Do employers force this form of employment? This is rather rare from our observation, because companies are afraid of this form, knowing that the labor market control bodies do not look at the employment of B2B with a favorable eye – says Piotr Skierkowski.

The situation for those who want to cooperate on the B2B principles will not improve. European Commission He presses Poland on improving the state of social security, including a pension system. Payment of some funds from KPO depends on the effects.

The government proposed the EC of a rapid reform of the National Labor Inspectorate. After the changes, the PIP inspector will be able to transform the order B2B contractsorder or for a work in the employment contract. Currently, such cases are resolved in court. In one of the interviews, Marcin Stanecki, the Chief Labor Inspector, announced that PIP would not interfere in the freedom to conclude contracts, the order would occur where “the civil law contract will be an abuse of law.”

– I think we will observe the retreat from this form of employment – says Anna Gołębicka. – We are looking for stabilization, income security and these arguments are also beginning to matter. An additional issue is convenience and lack of duties arising from running your own business. There are studies that show that these are important for the ZET generation, which was said to be more mobile, based on the work model on flexible forms.

Will the ZUS report accelerate changes? On Thursday, February 20, the report was discussed by the Sejm Social Policy and Family Policy Committee. – Maybe there will be proposals for legislative changes in this area – predicts Oskar Sobolewski.