Most Ukrainian women who fled the war in their country have found jobs in Poland, a deputy president of the Polish Development Fund (PFR) has said.
Bartosz Marczuk said on December 28 that the Polish central government, local governments and society had managed to accommodate the huge influx of refugees from Ukraine, mostly women and children.
He added that under a special law introduced in March, a month after Russia invaded its neighbour, “we immediately offered help, but we also opened the job market to refugees, as well as offering them access to education and healthcare.”
Marczuk went on to say that “at first we offered the refugees security and support with the aim that they will, in time, be able to stand on their own feet.”
According to Marczuk, 60% to 70% of refugees are working.
“Poland is now hosting 950,000 Ukrainian refugees,” he said. “They mostly take simple jobs, though in time this may change, as they are well educated and qualified.”
Apart from the refugees, there are also 1.2 to 1.3 million Ukrainians who were already working in Poland before the war started.
While Poland has borne the costs of hosting refugees it has also gained from employing them, Marczuk added.
“It can be estimated that the Polish budget has gained about PLN 4 billion (EUR 0.85 billion) in 2022 from taxes and contributions on refugee wages and in 2023 the figure will be about PLN 6 billion (EUR 1.28 billion),” he said.
Poland has enjoyed record-low unemployment for months, which makes it easy for the newcomers to find jobs, although they are mainly basic occupations. (The First News/Business World Magazine)