Diversity of Regional Labour Markets in Poland

Purpose: The aim of this article is to assess real changes taking place on regional labour markets in Poland over the last ten years. The starting point for the analysis was 2008 – the time of the economic crisis – and it was compared to 2018, a year marked by a significant improvement in the economy, including the labour market. Design/Methodology/Approach: To assess the initial and current situation on regional labour markets, the authors use variables obtained from CSO resources, diagnosing the situation in individual Polish voivodships. The identified set of variables served to create a synthetic indicator reflecting the situation on regional labour markets in Poland as a derivative of the condition of the economy. In order to conduct a comparative analysis of regional labour markets, the authors made rankings of voivodships for the two analysed periods with the use of the Hellwig method. The next stage of the study involved an estimation of the multiple regression model, which explains how the identified factors (determinants) affect the position of voivodships in the context of their employment potential. The authors adopted a ratio of the employed per 1,000 inhabitants as a dependent variable, while the variables determining the demand for labour were considered as independent variables. Findings: A ten-year comparison period adopted for the analyses showed that the economic crisis did not have a major impact on economic and labour market changes in Polish regions. Practical Implications: The proposed research methodology is universal and can be used to assess regional labour markets in other countries. Originality/Value: The conducted research allowed for the identification of factors influencing the situation on the labour market and the assessment of changes taking place on regional labour markets.