This article is a part of Poland Unpacked. Weekly intelligence for decision-makers
Gender pay gap
The chart below shows how the difference between women’s and men’s earnings in Poland changed from January 2024 to February 2026. The solid line represents the gap in average earnings, while the dashed line shows the difference in median earnings.
Interactive chart For most of this period, men earned several to more than a dozen percent more than women on average, with the gap being wider for average earnings than for the median. This indicates that the highest-paid positions and salaries are more frequently held by men.
In February 2026 (the latest data from Statistics Poland, GUS), the gender pay gap declined sharply. The difference was just 1.2 percent for average earnings and 1.6 percent for median earnings — the lowest levels recorded throughout the period under review.
The February puzzle
What explains this decline in the latest data published by GUS? A closer look reveals a seasonal pattern. The gender pay gap is at its lowest every February. In 2024, the gap in average earnings stood at 5.3 percent in that month, in 2025 at 3.2 percent, and in 2026 at 1.2 percent. This means that in February 2024 and 2025, the gap was around 4–5 percentage points lower than the annual average.
The reason behind this seasonality is the payment of additional annual bonuses to public-sector employees. The so-called 13th salary is paid precisely in February. It mainly goes to employees in public administration, schools and parts of the healthcare sector, as well as to uniformed services as an additional allowance. Some of these groups have a higher share of women (education and administration), while others have a higher share of men (uniformed services). Overall, however, it can be roughly estimated that around 70 percent of recipients of the 13th salary are women.
The public sector’s February surge
Interactive chart It is relatively easy to demonstrate that the 13th salary payments are the main driver behind this phenomenon. The chart below shows the gap between wages in the public and private sectors.
In February 2025, the difference reached nearly 40 percent for average earnings, compared with an annual average gap of 16.5 percent. For median earnings, the gap exceeded 50 percent, compared with an average annual difference of 32 percent.
Poland’s counties
The differences between the maps for January and February 2026 in terms of the pay gap at county level are striking. In January, the majority of counties (75 percent) recorded higher average earnings for men. In February, however, women had higher average earnings in many of them (66 percent). This is precisely the seasonal effect linked to the payment of the 13th salary. A large share of these payments goes to female-dominated parts of the public sector, leading to a temporary reduction — and in some areas even a reversal — of the raw gender pay gap.
Interactive chart The maps show that the February decline in the pay gap is widespread. Changes are visible across most regions of Poland and are not limited to individual provinces or major cities. This suggests that the phenomenon is driven by a nationwide factor affecting wages rather than by local changes in labor market conditions.
Interactive chart The highest gender pay gaps are found primarily in counties associated with mining, energy and heavy industry, such as the Copper Basin, Upper Silesia and Bełchatów. They are also visible in the largest metropolitan areas, including Warsaw, Kraków and the Tri-City. These locations share a concentration of highly paid industries and positions that are still predominantly held by men, resulting in the largest differences between average earnings of women and men.
By contrast, the counties where women’s average earnings were higher than men’s in January are mainly smaller local centers. They tend to have agricultural or service-based economies and lack large industrial or mining facilities. For example, Kołobrzeg and Iława counties rely heavily on services and tourism. Chojnice and Kościerzyna counties are based on services and manufacturing, while Maków, Żuromin and Kolno counties have a distinctly agricultural profile. In such areas, the public sector plays a greater role, which contributes to a slight advantage for women in average earnings.
The difference between the pay gap and the earnings gap
It is important to remember, however, that the data presented here show only differences in women’s and men’s wages. They do not take into account factors such as differences in occupations, positions held, age or working hours.
Another important point is that the analysis covers only earnings from employment contracts. The highest incomes are generated through self-employment outside agriculture. However, significantly fewer women than men choose this form of earning income. For every business run by a woman, there are two run by men.