GUS: Surprising Growth in Wages at Enterprises Amid a Continuing Decline in Employment
On 20 August 2026, Statistics Poland (GUS) reported that in July 2026 the average gross monthly wage in the enterprise sector was PLN 9,509.02, representing a 6.8% increase on that in July 2025. This significantly exceeded economists’ forecasts, who had expected growth of around 6.2–6.3%.
According to analysts, the higher-than-expected level is due to a combination of one-off factors, including bonuses paid in the mining, energy, and forestry sectors, as well as the low base in July 2025, which is why the acceleration in wage growth is expected to be only temporary.
At the same time, the level of employment in the enterprise sector was around 53,000 lower than in July 2025, although it did increase by 4,000 compared to June 2026, marking the first monthly rise since November 2025.