Registered unemployment rate in Poland 1990-2024
The unemployment rate decreased from 9.5 percent in 2008 to 5.1 percent in December 2024. The highest registered unemployment rate was recorded in 2012 and 2013 at 13.4 percent.
Unemployment in Poland
In 2022, more than 15.2 million people were working in Poland, and the employment rate has increased by 14.3 percentage points since 2010. As a result, Poland also registered one of the lowest unemployment rates in the European Union. The average level of unemployment in the EU in 2023 was six percent. In Poland, it was 2.8 percent.
Podkarpackie voivodeship (8.6 percent) registered the highest level of unemployment. On the contrary, the lowest rate was recorded in Wielkopolskie voivodeship (three percent). The most significant difficulties in finding a job in 2022 were experienced by young people — aged 35 to 44 years and those with lower secondary and incomplete primary education. Women were also more likely to have unemployed status than men. Nevertheless, looking for a new job in Poland is relatively short and depends on age. People aged over 50 observed the longest period of searching for a new job.
Economic emigration
Poland has struggled with a high emigration rate since the labor transition period. However, since 2016, the migration balance has been improving, and the number of people emigrating from Poland is slowly stabilizing. Despite low unemployment, increasing job offers, and a strengthening labor market, 16.9 percent of Poles were considering economic emigration in February 2023. The people who most often go abroad to work are manual workers. Six out of 10 people had elementary, vocational, or secondary education. The prevailing reason for leaving was higher wages than those offered at home. Germany and the Netherlands were the most popular countries for working abroad in 2023.
