Recruitment Remains Tough for Employers as Unemployment in Poland Declines: April Figures Released by the Ministry
The Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy announced that the registered unemployment rate in April was 5.1%. This marks a decrease of 0.2 percentage points from March. According to the Ministry, this is the lowest unemployment rate recorded in April since 1990.
Preliminary data from the Ministry indicates that the unemployment rate in April ranged from 3.1% in the Wielkopolskie Voivodeship to 8.5% in the Podkarpackie Voivodeship. Nationwide, the rate stood at 5.1%, showing a 0.2 percentage point drop compared to both the previous month and the same period last year.
The Job Market Remains Buoyant
On Wednesday, Deputy Minister of Family, Labor and Social Policy, Sebastian Gajewski, emphasised that there are currently no signs on the job market indicating a worsening of the situation, an increase in unemployment or a decline in professional activity.
– There are no disturbing phenomena in the current labor market that could signal a deterioration of the situation on the job market or could signal an increase in unemployment or a decline in professional activity in the future. In particular, at the moment we are not noticing an increased number of reports regarding group layoffs, said the deputy minister at a meeting of the parliamentary committee.
Gajewski added that there is information in the public space about planned group layoffs, but the volume of these layoffs is smaller than in the corresponding periods of previous years.
– Secondly, these are planned group layoffs, the volume of which results from notifications sent to labor offices, and practice shows that employers usually lay off less or much less than they initially report, he said.
Unemployment Figures Drop by 23.7 Thousand
According to preliminary data, 798,500 people were registered as unemployed in April, a decrease of 23,700 (2.9%) from the previous month. Among the registered unemployed at the end of April, 13,100 were Ukrainian citizens, making up 1.6% of the total unemployed population. The number of job vacancies is also rising showing that recruitment remains challenging for Poland’s employers. The Ministry also reported that employers notified job centres of 88,100 vacancies in April 2024, maintaining similar levels to the previous month and representing an increase of 6,800 (8.4%) compared to April 2023. This figure is similar to the previous month and represents an increase of 6,800 (8.4%) compared to April 2023.
March Unemployment: Poland Leads the EU
In March, although the Ministry’s data showed an unemployment rate of 5.3%, according to Eurostat methodology, the unemployment rate was 2.9%, placing Poland first among EU countries, tied with the Czech Republic. The EU average in March was 6%, while the eurozone’s rate was 6.5%. Slovenia followed in second place with an unemployment rate of 3.1%, with Germany and Malta in third place at 3.2%.
In the same period, Eurostat data indicated that 515,000 people were unemployed in Poland, a reduction of 1,000 compared to February this year, and an increase from 479,000 in March 2023.
Source:PAP
