Gi Group: 18.4% of companies currently employ foreigners and 83% of employees are Ukrainians

Almost 1/5 of the companies (18.4%) currently employ foreigners, and according to the declaration this number is expected to increase even more in the next year, according to the "Labour Market Barometer 2024" Gi Group Holding. The vast majority, because 83% of foreigners working in Poland are still Ukrainians who, although they appreciate work in Poland, are increasingly choosing work in the West.

According to the report, foreigners are mainly employed by large enterprises (26.5%), mainly from the industrial sector (27.3%) and services (20.3%). The lowest interest in hiring foreigners is visible in small businesses (90% does not employ foreigners) and in the public sector (86.2%).

The survey also shows that the majority of foreigners working in Poland are Ukrainians (83%), followed by citizens of the former Eastern Bloc (Białorus, Armenia, Uzbekistan and others). - 25.5%) and other European countries - 24.5%. Foreigners from further directions account for 14.9%. The plans for their employment in the coming year are much more often declared by companies that currently have foreigners among their employees. 18% want to acquire Ukrainians, 8% from other European countries, 7.3% from the countries of the former Eastern Bloc. The openness to employees from further directions is declared by 0.6% of entrepreneurs.

“Light unemployment rate and lack of hands to work mean that the share of foreigners in the total number of employees in Poland is growing. While ten years ago, their number did not exceed 100,000, i.e. 1% of all insured persons in the Social Insurance Institution, at the end of last year this percentage amounted to nearly 7%, which constituted 1.13 million employees. Most of them were citizens of Ukraine, but more and more citizens from other countries work in Poland, including the so-called far-reaching directions. According to the 'Labour Market Barometer 2024' Gi Group Holding, the employment of employees from outside Europe in the last year has more than doubled - from nearly 6% to almost 15%," said the managing director of Gi Group Poland Anna Wesołowska.

Although the largest increase in working foreigners has affected Ukrainian citizens in recent years, their number is still insufficient to fill the staff gap. At the same time, the increasing costs of living and the large number of job vacancies make their expectations of employment conditions increasing. Poland is increasingly becoming only a transit country for them - they are taking a job here in anticipation of better professional and earning opportunities in the West. The problem with the lack of Ukrainians in Poland becomes visible especially in small towns, where they are an important part of the total number of employees, it was also reported.

Gi Group Holding is an international employment agency present in 57 countries - of which 30 directly - in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas. It has been operating in Poland since 2007.

Source: Gi Group and ISBnews