Where Polish wages rose fastest

This article is a part of Poland Unpacked. Weekly intelligence for decision-makers

Average gross monthly pay in Poland reached PLN 9,178 in May 2026, up 5.8% from a year earlier. Wages rose fastest in healthcare, while women - particularly the highest earners - saw larger increases than men. Data from Statistics Poland also show substantial differences between counties.

Statistics Poland (GUS) has published its latest data on the distribution of wages across the national economy in May 2026. Average gross monthly pay stood at PLN 9,178.16, a nominal increase of 5.8% from the same month a year earlier. Unlike the monthly wage data for the enterprise sector, these statistics are based on administrative records and cover the entire national economy, including the public sector and smaller businesses.

Women’s pay is growing faster

The GUS data show that women’s wages grew faster than men’s, particularly at the upper end of the pay distribution. Median gross monthly pay rose by 6.6% year over year in May 2026. The increase was 6.7% for women and 6.1% for men.

The differences were even greater among the highest earners. The ninth-decile threshold - the pay level above which the highest-paid 10% fall - rose by 6.9% for women and 5.0% for men. This means the relative gender pay gap narrowed at the upper end of the distribution. At the same time, the weakest growth was recorded at the first-decile threshold - just 3.0%, matching the growth rate of the minimum wage.

Healthcare up, mining down

Wage growth varied considerably across sectors. Average gross pay rose fastest in healthcare and social assistance, increasing by 10.4% year over year - almost twice as fast as in the national economy as a whole, where it rose by 5.8%. This strong growth is likely to be largely a result of the statutory wage adjustment in healthcare providers that took effect on July 1, 2025. Minimum basic salaries for employees covered by the adjustment rose by 14.34%. The increase resulted from a mechanism linked to growth in average pay across the national economy in the previous year.

Pay also grew strongly in culture, sports and recreation at 8.7%; professional, scientific and technical activities at 7.5%; and water supply, wastewater and waste management at 7.4%. Against that backdrop, wage growth was considerably slower in education at 4.6% and public administration at 3.9%.

This is largely a consequence of the relatively small increases provided for in the 2026 budget. Both the base amount used to calculate teachers’ pay and wages in the state budget-funded sector were increased by just 3% - well below average wage growth across the economy. In mining and energy, average pay fell slightly in nominal terms.

Why did pay rise faster for the highest-earning women than for men?

Healthcare and social assistance is one of the most female-dominated sectors of the Polish economy: women account for nearly 82% of everyone working in the field. This most likely helps explain why women’s pay at the upper end of the distribution grew considerably faster than men’s.

A second hypothesis is that higher-paid men are moving from employment contracts into self-employment more frequently, including to avoid the 32% personal income tax rate that applies after crossing the second tax threshold. This could be holding down wage growth for men at the upper end of the distribution, as income from business activity is not included in employee wage statistics. Testing the hypothesis, however, would require additional data on movements between salaried employment and self-employment.

Wages rose across almost all of Poland, but at different rates

Wage growth also varied geographically. In May 2026, average gross monthly pay was nominally higher than a year earlier in almost all of Poland’s counties. In the vast majority, the increase ranged from 2% to 8%, although some recorded faster growth. The largest increases were in Włoszczowa County at 10.2%, the city of Olsztyn at 9.7%, and Olsztyn County at 9.4%.

Where did wages fall, and what might explain it?

In two counties, nominal wages fell: by 3.1% in Starachowice County and by 0.6% in the city of Jastrzębie-Zdrój. Relatively small increases were also recorded in Góra County at 1.6% and Lubin County at 1.8%.

Slow wage growth in some counties may be linked to the situation of their largest local employers. In Jastrzębie-Zdrój, for example, the financial difficulties of coal producer Jastrzębska Spółka Węglowa may have played an important role. In February 2026, the company reached an agreement with trade unions to reduce some employee benefits as part of a savings program. In Lubin County, whose economy is closely linked to KGHM, differences in bonuses and additional benefits, as well as changes in the composition of employment, may have contributed to the slow growth in average pay.

The map also shows substantial differences in the pace of wage growth, both between regions and between neighboring counties. There is no clear division of the country into areas of high and low wage growth. It is also worth remembering that the data refer to employees’ county of residence, not the location of their workplace.

Average gross pay rose by 5.8% year over year in May 2026, reaching PLN 9,178. Women’s pay grew faster than men’s, particularly among the highest earners. The ninth-decile threshold rose by 6.9% for women and 5.0% for men.
The largest wage increase was recorded in healthcare and social assistance, at 10.4%. This may have been primarily due to the statutory wage adjustment in healthcare providers. Pay grew much more slowly in education and public administration, at 4.6% and 3.9%, respectively, while it fell slightly in mining and energy.
Nominal wages rose in almost all Polish counties, but the pace varied considerably. Włoszczowa County recorded the largest increase, at 10.2%, while wages fell in Starachowice County by 3.1% and Jastrzębie-Zdrój by 0.6%. These differences may reflect both the situation of local employers and changes in the composition of employment.