Five year construction forecast: Polish workers turn backs on UK

Polish workers are turning their back on the UK construction market because of an improving domestic economy and a dramatic drop in the value of sterling against the zloty.

A recent flood of workers from eastern Europe has filled the skills gap on site but the flow of workers is now drying up with Poles being lured back to their homeland.

The pound has devalued by nearly one third against the zloty since the start of the year – shrinking pay packets traditionally sent home by Polish workers.

Investment is also pouring into eastern Europe with EU funding set to rise in Poland alone to £91bn between now and 2013.

Events like the Euro 2012 Football championships in Poland and Ukraine are also attracting workers to be employed on massive stadium construction programmes.

Phillip Wagstaff, director of eastern European recruitment specialist Resolve, says: “Polish people won’t take jobs now unless
the money is right and one of the main factors has been the exchange rate.

“Six months ago you were getting six zlotys to the pound and now it is 4.3. People are having a much harder look at whether it is worth coming over here because their money isn’t as much when they send it back due to the exchange rate.

“Unless the pay is at a certain level it doesn’t stack up for them – particularly when you consider the cost of living here in terms of rent and living expenses.”

Polish cities have also launched a campaign to woo their workers back with officials visiting ex-pat Polish communities in the UK to lure them home.

Wagstaff says: “There is a lot of EU funding rolling in.

“Wages are still higher here but the gap is getting smaller and the cost of living is much cheaper in Poland, where a packet of
cigarettes is only 75p.”

Wagstaff is confident other eastern European countries will provide extra labour if Poland sees a mass return of its builders.

He says: “Other countries are coming in to fill the gaps. We are getting a lot more people from Latvia and Estonia.

“Romanians and Bulgarians are restricted to a few industries or self-employment, but that will change soon so we will see a lot of workers from those two countries. It’s a changing market and you have to adapt.”