Unemployment in Poland

Poland's unemployment rate remains impressively low, reflecting a robust labor market and steady economic growth.

Additionally, Poland's integration into the European Union has facilitated labor mobility and economic opportunities, further supporting low unemployment rates.

As a result, Poland continues to enjoy one of the lowest unemployment rates in Europe, contributing to its economic stability and social well-being.

After Poland's transition to a market economy the unemployment rate sharply increased, peaking at above 16% in 1993, then dropped afterwards, but remained well above pre-1993 levels.

[10] This definition is similar to the one used by GUS but considers people between 15 and 74, rather than 17 and 74, years of age, and counts the unemployed as a percentage of the labor force.

[15] Official statistics for the period only account for non-farm wage and salary earners who registered as unemployed with a labor exchange.

One scholar calculated a non-farm wage-earner unemployment rate of 13% for 1929 and 25% for 1931, estimating a "substantially higher" figure for 1938, given natural increase in the urban population and migration from rural areas.

Following Poland's transformation from a communist to capitalist economy after the Revolutions of 1989, unemployment sharply increased from the officially reported 0%[17][18] to 6.5% in 1990, peaking at 16.4% at 1993, and then decreasing to about 10.3% in 1997.

[2] As Poland entered European Union in 2004 and its job market, mass emigration due to unemployment took place lowering the figure.

[20][21] As of February 2019, Poland's unemployment rate has been reported as 6,1% (GUS)[22] and 3,4% (European Central Bank, Eurostat),[23] and has been steadily decreasing over the years from the previous high of c. 20% in the early 2000s.