Minimum wage in Poland: How much is it in 2024?

The minimum wage in Poland – what is it?

To put it simply, the minimum wage is the lowest amount an employer is obliged by law to pay to a person working under an employment contract. Among other things, the minimum wage also determines the minimum hourly rate.

How many people in Poland earn the minimum wage?

• 1,5 million workers

This is how many workers in Poland receive the minimum wage.

• 13% of the total workforce in Poland

This is how many percent of the workforce in Poland receive the minimum wage.

In comparison to member states of the European Union, the Polish rate of workers receiving the minimum wage is relatively high.

• 10% of employed in the EU

According to Eurofound, the minimum wage is received on average by 10% employed in the European Union.

Minimum wage amount in 2024

Usually, the minimum wage is given as a gross amount. That being said, most employees are interested in the net amount, so how much money will get into their pocket after the taxes.

With that in mind, in 2024 there will be two changes:

It is worth noting that the exact net amount for each individual might vary.

Several factors might impact the final amount of your minimum wage, such as:

• filing of a PIT-2 statement with your company,
• working outside the workplace (remote and hybrid work, etc.),
• inclusion of your deductible expenses.

Minimum wage amount – the longer perspective

It’s particularly noteworthy to look into the broader picture of the minimum wage in Poland. If we take into account the data from the past few years, we will see that the amount more than doubled since 2018! That is, of course, offset by inflation and the analogical growing prices of utilities, food, or gas, so the people working in Poland might feel any relief to their monthly budgets.

Minimum wage through the years

What are the pros and cons of minimum wage?

n theory and, in many cases, in practice as well, it is in the interest of both the employee and the employer to pay a fair wage on time for work performed.

On one hand, the main purpose of the minimum wage is to offer a fair salary, thus protecting an employee from exploitation by the employer.

On the other hand, from the perspective of an employer, in setting the minimum cost of hiring an employee, minimum wage can have major undesirable consequences:

• Obstacle in combating Poland’s unemployment ­– An employer might decide to hire fewer people to cut down the operational costs.
• Paradoxically, contributing to exploitation of workers ­ ­– If the minimum wage is a requirement only in case of employment contracts, it might make some employers reluctant to offer this type of cooperation to their workers. In turn, they might be more willing to offer so-called “umowy śmieciowe” (eng. ”sewage” or “trash contracts”) which entail fewer employee protection mechanisms.

Sources:

Pit.pl – Wynagrodzenia minimalne