Decent wage

A minimum hourly rate was introduced on 1 January 2017 to limit the phenomenon of abusing civil law agreements and protect persons with the lowest wage. In 2017 an hourly rate amounted to PLN 13 gross, and in 2019 it will amount to PLN 14.70.

More employed

A good situation in the labour market means higher employment. In the 3rd quarter of 2018 the number of the employed amounted to a record level of over 16.6 million. In comparison with 2015 it is by 383 thousand persons more.

The increase in the minimum wage

While stipulating the minimum wage for 2017, the government increased it from PLN 1,850 to PLN 2,000. In this year, the minimum wage already amounted to PLN 2,100. In 2019 it will be PLN 2,250. In comparison to year 2015 the minimum wage increased by PLN 500, that is, by almost 30 percent.

An agreement before starting work

As of 1 September 2016 employers have to sign an agreement with an employee before allowing them to work. Previously an agreement could have been concluded until the end of the first day of work. This constitutes a fight against a so-called first working day syndrome. Dishonest employers did not conclude agreements with employees and in case of control they explained that it was their first day at work.

Record low unemployment

As results from the study conducted by Eurostat, in October this year the unemployment rate in Poland amounted to 3.8 percent. It is significantly lower than the European average – in October the unemployment rate in 28 European Union states amounted to 6.7 percent, and in Euro area countries – 8.1 percent.