Voivodeship Labor Offices Demand Repayment of Previously Granted Support from Entrepreneurs – Is There More to the Story?
There is growing concern over the mass letters sent by Voivodeship Labor Offices (WUP) to companies, demanding the repayment of financial support granted in 2020 and 2021 as part of pandemic relief measures.
The actions of the Voivodeship Labor Offices (WUP) stem from the approaching three-year deadline for reviewing previously issued decisions.
“The Labor Offices failed to complete the verification on time, and now— to avoid the statute of limitations— they are using a simple legal trick to extend the period and possibility of verification. If this is confirmed, we are dealing with an absolute scandal, involving the harassment of entrepreneurs, especially those from the SME sector,” explains Tomasz Szypuła, President of the National Federation of SMEs.
In their letters, Voivodeship Labor Offices (WUP) are demanding not only the repayment of the financial support received under the COVID relief program but also interest on the amount. The interest is calculated from the date of receiving the funds until the repayment date, and entrepreneurs are given only 30 days to return the money.
Voivodeship Labor Offices, as part of their proceedings to recover what they claim to be unduly received funds from ZUS, have started sending entrepreneurs requests for a conciliation attempt. However, in reality, these were merely tactics to extend the proceedings and suspend the statute of limitations period. It can be said that these actions were somewhat illusory, as the conciliation requests did not include any concessions from the Office’s side. The very essence of a settlement is mutual concessions by both parties to resolve an existing or potential dispute,”** comment experts from the National Federation of SMEs.
The actions of the Voivodeship Labor Offices should be thoroughly investigated. If our suspicions are confirmed, it will serve as yet another example that whenever officials and politicians get involved in matters concerning Polish small and medium-sized enterprises, it only leads to problems for them. We call on all relevant institutions, particularly the Labor Offices, to clarify the situation and provide a precise response on whether all documents of the summoned entrepreneurs have been fully verified,”** says Tomasz Szypuła, President of the National Federation of SMEs.
Interestingly, we have received reports that Voivodeship Labor Offices have approached the supervising Ministry with a request for significant funding to continue their work and verify documents. This raises serious concerns.
– Undoubtedly, some entrepreneurs, who simply cannot afford legal battles, will be intimidated by these letters and return the money demanded by the Offices,” concludes Tomasz Szypuła from the National Federation of SMEs.
All entrepreneurs affected by this issue are encouraged to contact the National Federation of SMEs and share their situation and perspective at biuro@federacjamsp.eu. – biuro@federacjamsp.eu.