In Poland, wages increased dramatically in nominal terms during the 1990s; however prices also rose very sharply, so on balance there was only a comparatively modest increase in real wages of about 25 per cent between 1992 and 2000 (Table 12.1).
In general there has been a slow but steady differentiation between the wages paid for different types of job. The most common tendency is to link pay with the qualifications required for a job. While the level of wage differentiation between men and women and between industries has remained more or less constant, salaries and wages have risen faster in public companies than in privately owned ones (Wolynka, 2001).
1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 1992 | 1995 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
(previous year = 100) | (=100) | (=100) | |||||||
Average monthly gross nominal wages and salaries | 134.5 | 131.6 | 126.5 | 121.9 | 115.7 | 112.5 | 111.1 | 532.1 | 223.0 |
Prices of consumer goods and services | 132.3 | 128.0 | 119.9 | 115.1 | 112.0 | 107.4 | 110.0 | 418.2 | 182.6 |
Average monthly gross real wages and salaries | 101.7 | 102.8 | 105.5 | 105.9 | 103.3 | 104.7 | 101.0 | 127.2 | 122.1 |
Source : Central Statistical Office (2001a), p. 165. |
Geographical location is a very important factor in wage differentiation. Within the same industry, the average wage for a certain job category often varies considerably from region to region. The highest wages are paid in the Warsaw region (Table 12.2), where the average pay for certain positions can be nearly 100 per cent above that in some other regions , mainly due to the fact that most large domestic and foreign corporations have their headquarters in the Warsaw region (FAZ-Institut, 1997, p. 25). The second position is held by the region of Silesia.
In 2000 the average Polish wage amounted to 1894 zloty. In sectors such as mining, electricity, gas, water and finance the pay was considerably above the national average, whereas in areas such as health, social work and fishing it was considerably below the average (Table 12.3).
Ownership is another important factor in variations in pay (Table 12.4). In 2000 state-owned companies paid an average salary of 2239 zloty. While local government bodies only paid 1778 zloty, this was slightly above the average in the private sector, where the lowest salaries were paid by private Polish companies and the highest by foreign-owned ones.
Despite many years of substantial pay increases , the pay gap between Poland and, for instance, the members of the European Union is still large. This difference is put into even greater relief by the fact that Poland shares a border with Germany, which is part of the so-called ˜high-pay zone . Polish middle managers or specialists still only earn 25 “30 per cent of the salaries of their counterparts in Western Europe (Watson Wyatt, 1999, p. 1), and the pay awarded to manual workers in Poland, as in the entire CEE region, is only a fraction of that in the EU, especially when productivity differences are taken into consideration. However the gap has narrowed at the top of the pay structure, and general managers and senior managers salaries are now reaching the levels in EU countries where pay levels are lower, such as Portugal (approximately 50 per cent of the neighbouring high-paying EU countries ). When the pay levels are adjusted for purchasing power the gap reduces further (ibid., p. 2).
Region | Total | Industry | Manufacturing | Trade and repair | Transport and storage | Financial intermediation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Poland | 1894 | 1942 | 1757 | 1590 | 2144 | 3258 |
Dolnoslaskie | 1811 | 1997 | 1660 | 1405 | 2031 | 2612 |
Kujawsko-pomorskie | 1669 | 1693 | 1649 | 1306 | 1916 | 2514 |
Lubelskie | 1679 | 1695 | 1558 | 1272 | 1938 | 2580 |
Lubuskie | 1670 | 1623 | 1566 | 1294 | 1904 | 2306 |
Lodzkie | 1669 | 1664 | 1457 | 1355 | 1975 | 2640 |
Malopolskie | 1744 | 1824 | 1750 | 1416 | 1935 | 3126 |
Warsaw | 2470 | 2291 | 2219 | 2289 | 2876 | 4735 |
Opolskie | 1732 | 1813 | 1730 | 1342 | 1902 | 2622 |
Podkarpackie | 1639 | 1694 | 1648 | 1230 | 1830 | 2538 |
Podlaskie | 1676 | 1629 | 1560 | 1335 | 1958 | 2554 |
Pomorskie | 1826 | 1862 | 1820 | 1451 | 2155 | 2698 |
Silesia | 1954 | 2304 | 1775 | 1439 | 1965 | 2887 |
Swietokrzyskie | 1718 | 1856 | 1732 | 1287 | 1880 | 2414 |
Warminsko-mazurskie | 1671 | 1703 | 1660 | 1275 | 1946 | 2299 |
Wielkopolskie | 1772 | 1767 | 1679 | 1507 | 2007 | 2797 |
Zachodno-pomorskie | 1741 | 1808 | 1722 | 1342 | 2107 | 2540 |
Source : Central Statistical Office (2001b), p. 114f.
Sector | Zloty |
---|---|
National average | 1894 |
Public Service | 1932 |
Agriculture | 1712 |
Fishing | 1355 |
Mining | 3210 |
Manufacturing | 1756 |
Electricity, gas and water supply | 2563 |
Construction | 1706 |
Trade and repairs | 1560 |
Hotels and restaurants | 1301 |
Transport, storage and communications | 2144 |
Financial intermediation | 3258 |
Real estate | 2133 |
Public administration | 2432 |
Education | 1835 |
Health and social work | 1480 |
Other community, social and personal service activities | 1892 |
Source : Central Statistical Office (2001a), p. 163.
Ownership category | Zloty |
---|---|
National average | 1894 |
Public Service | 2066 |
State | 2239 |
Local government | 1778 |
Private sector | 1760 |
Private domestic | 1520 |
Cooperatives | 1554 |
Foreign | 2729 |
Source : Central Statistical Office (2001a), p. 164.
Detailed and reliable information on managers and specialists pay in Poland is not easy to obtain. The quickest (and the most expensive) way to ascertain the relevant pay levels in different job markets is to obtain data from one of the major human resource consultancies. The salary surveys published from time to time in certain journals and newspapers also give some indication of the current pay levels in specific parts of the Polish job market. For example, one study carried out in 2001 reported that a sales director in an IT company earned between PLN 8100 and 23 000, PLN 14 600 being the average salary for this position (Wolynka, 2001). According to the same survey, a software engineer earned PLN 3500 on average, with PLN 2200 and PLN 4850 as the lowest and highest values, respectively. In general, managers receive much higher salaries than specialists, and specialists are paid considerably more than employees in posts requiring little or no specific education and experience. Thus, a financial director in a large company earns about PLN 11 600, a department head in human resources somewhat more than PLN 5600 and a specialist in purchasing a little over PLN 3500, whereas accounting clerks and secretaries earn only around PLN 2500. A survey carried out in 1997 revealed that the influence of a corporation s location on the level of executive and specialist remuneration is particularly strong (cf. F.A.Z.-Institut, 1997: 25). Thus, for most managing and specialist positions salaries in the Warsaw region reach easily 200 per cent of what is paid in the less central regions of the country. In other major cities, managers and specialists still earn about 50 per cent more than their colleagues in smaller cities and rural areas.