57% of Ukrainians Who Found Jobs in Poland Plan to Stay for Over a Year — Research

According to data from the analytics centre of the international employment company Gremi Personal, 57% of Ukrainians take up employment in Poland for at least one year. 17% of respondents said they are looking for work for a period of 3 to 6 months, 15% stated they plan to work for half a year, and 11% came here for a period of one to three months.

The study was conducted via an online survey during April and May 2023, with 1,280 employed Ukrainians aged 18 to 60 taking part.

"Before the full-scale invasion, Ukrainians used to come to Poland mainly for 4–6 months and then return to Ukraine to spend the money they had earned. This trend has changed noticeably — Ukrainians are now looking for work over a longer period, as they understand that due to the war their stay in Poland will be longer than usual. As a result, people are now more careful in their job search and more demanding when it comes to working and living conditions. Notably, people have started retraining for other professions and applying for more skilled positions. I am convinced that in the future Ukrainians will pose significant competition on the local employment market, even at TOP-level positions," — says Anna Dzhabolda, Head of the Recruitment Department at Gremi Personal.

Respondents were also asked about the reasons why they chose Poland as their country for work and life.

24% consider Poland an attractive country for earning money due to its geographical proximity to Ukraine — the highest figure among all response options. 20% said they chose Poland because they have friends and relatives there. For 17% of Ukrainians, it is important that Poles are mentally closer to Ukrainians, especially compared to Western European countries. 14% answered that Poland offers high wages. 11% chose Poland because the cost of living is lower than in other European countries. 9% chose this country because Polish is easier to learn than other languages, and 5% point to the ease of obtaining work documents.

"Recently, a new trend has been emerging on the Polish employment market. We are witnessing a growing demand for highly qualified Ukrainians. Every fifth request from our partners is for finding a TOP manager. This is linked to the mass opening of Ukrainian businesses in Poland, which naturally prefer highly qualified Ukrainians over Polish candidates. This trend explains the relatively high percentage of people intending to work in Poland for more than a year. This is good news for Ukrainians with high competency levels who were forced by the war to work in Poland in lower-skilled roles," — adds Lilya Tereshchenko, Deputy Director of the international employment agency Gremi Personal.