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🌐 Asia and Latin America are changing the face of employment in Poland

  • dariakalenikova
  • Jul 7
  • 3 min read

The labour market in Poland is currently undergoing a significant transformation, characterised by a rapid increase in the number of workers from Asia and Latin America. Data from the first four months of 2025 show that Colombians have received 15,400 work permits, Filipinos 12,500, Indians 10,600 and Nepalese 7,200. This trend marks a fundamental change in the structure of the Polish labour market, where the traditional dominance of Ukrainians is gradually giving way to workers from hitherto underrepresented regions.


Work permits issued to the top 5 countries in Poland (first 4 months of 2025)
Work permits issued to the top 5 countries in Poland (first 4 months of 2025)

Scale of transformation: Fivefold growth in five years

Data from a comprehensive study conducted by the Centre for East European Studies at the University of Warsaw reveals the scale of this transformation. In 2019, around 55,000 work permits were issued to citizens from Asia and Latin America, while by 2023, it was already over 275,000 - a fivefold increase. Particularly impressive is the increase in the number of workers from Latin America, which increased more than 12-fold - from around 1.3 thousand permits in 2019 to more than 16.5 thousand in 2023.


According to data from the Social Insurance Institution, Colombians (215%), Nepalese (110%) and Argentinians (75%) recorded the largest annual increase in the group of foreigners working in Poland in 2023. In comparison, the increase in the number of Ukrainians over the same period was less than 2%.




Why do employers choose Asian and Latin American workers?

  1. Staff characteristics


Employers emphasise the key advantages of workers from these regions that make them stand out in the Polish labour market:

  • Low staff turnover - they show greater stability of employment

  • High work discipline - they have a professional approach

  • Lower demands compared to other migrant groups

  • Long-term planning of stay - they often consider permanent residence in Poland


  1. Sectoral preferences


Workers from these regions are keen to take up employment in deficit sectors:

  • Manufacturing (41.22% of foreigners employed)

  • Transport and storage (22.99%)

  • Construction (11.8%)

  • Administrative services (11.51%)



Impact on temporary employment agencies

  1. New development opportunities


Temporary work agencies are gaining significant expansion opportunities thanks to the growing demand for workers from Asia and Latin America. The temporary work sector in Poland currently employs around 772,000 people annually and is estimated to be worth PLN 6.5 billion.


According to the Polish HR Forum, 90% of the revenue of employment agencies in Poland comes from temporary work, highlighting the importance of this segment. 69% of temporary workers are employed in manufacturing, which is where workers from Asia and Latin America most often find employment.


  1. Challenges and adaptation


Agencies need to adapt to the new requirements:

  • Knowledge of the visa specificities of different countries

  • Managing cultural and language differences

  • Adaptation to new regulations in force from June 2025

  • Extended recruitment process - an average of 5 months and 11 days for Asian and Latin American workers



Consequences for employers

Strategic advantages


Hiring workers from distant countries is a strategic solution for employers to several key problems:

  • Filling staffing deficits in key sectors of the economy

  • Increasing employment stability through lower turnover

  • Cost optimisation through competitive wages

  • Greater operational flexibility in production planning


The Centre for Social and Economic Analysis calculates that between 2015 and 2023, foreign workers in the transport, logistics, industry, construction and agriculture sectors contributed an average of 2.3% to Poland's GDP growth, equivalent to an average of 0.24 percentage points per year.



Impact on the Polish economy

  1. Positive macroeconomic effects


The influx of workers from Asia and Latin America is fundamentally supporting the Polish economy:

  • Stabilisation of the labour market in sectors with labour shortages

  • Increased tax revenues and social contributions

  • Increase in international competitiveness of Polish companies

  • Support for continuity of production also on weekends and holidays


According to forecasts, Poland will need an additional 2.6 million foreign workers by 2033 to keep the labour market and pension system in balance.


  1. Challenges and risks


Intensifying labour migration also carries potential risks:

  • Pressure on wages in some sectors

  • Deterioration of working conditions through increased competition

  • Integration challenges due to cultural differences

  • Burden on social infrastructure in regions with a high concentration of migrants



Migration Strategy 2025-2030

The government's new approach


The Migration Strategy 2025-2030 introduces a selective approach to migration:

  • Security as a priority - strict control of the purpose of arrival and the scale of the influx

  • Transparent visa policy with clear entry rules

  • Filling of professional deficits by foreigners

  • Strengthening consular autonomy in decision-making



The growing presence of Asian and Latin American workers on the Polish labour market is not a temporary phenomenon, but a structural transformation responding to Poland's demographic and economic challenges. For temporary work agencies, this means new opportunities for growth, but requires adaptation to changing legal and cultural requirements.


For employers, this transformation offers a solution to staffing deficits and increased employment stability, but at the same time requires investment in integration processes and adaptation to new regulations.

 
 
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