This article is a part of Poland Unpacked. Weekly intelligence for decision-makers
The pace of growth was slightly faster than in April, when it stood at 5.4% year on year.
Interactive chart It is worth noting, however, that the data cover only companies employing at least 10 people. Across the broader national economy, wage growth was likely somewhat slower.
Viewed in a broader context, the data show that wage growth is gradually losing momentum. This is a natural consequence of several developments in the economy.
First, the stabilization of inflation means that workers are no longer submitting frequent wage demands. Second, the period of declining real wages – when inflation outpaced nominal wage growth – has already been made up. Finally, minimum wage growth in 2026 amounted to just 3% year on year.
That said, wages in the corporate sector are still rising clearly above the inflation rate. This remains true even in the face of elevated inflation in recent months, driven by higher energy commodity prices following the outbreak of the conflict in Iran. In May, real wage growth reached 2.7%.
From a macroeconomic perspective, two issues are key in the wage data. First, there are no signs that the conflict in Iran is translating into higher wage pressure in companies. Together with data showing stabilizing inflation expectations, this suggests that the risk of a wage–price spiral is effectively zero. As a result, further interest rate hikes in Poland can, in practice, be ruled out.
Second, real wage growth is still set to support consumption, one of the key drivers of economic growth.
No breakthrough in construction
We also received data on construction and assembly production, which rose by 3.9% year on year in May (in constant prices). After adjusting for seasonal effects, the increase was slightly stronger, at 4.8% year on year. These dynamics are broadly similar to those seen in the previous month.
Interactive chart To put it mildly, the figures are underwhelming. Activity in the construction sector did improve, but a significant part of this was driven by a low base effect from last year. More importantly, there is still no sign of the investment boom that had been expected in connection with the need to rapidly deploy funds from the National Recovery Plan and the EU budget.
A first, tentative sign of improvement may be rising activity in specialized construction works. In May, production in this segment increased by 10.8% year on year, compared with 4.6% a month earlier. This may reflect the structure of investments financed under the National Recovery Plan, which tend to focus on more advanced projects rather than relatively simple infrastructure such as roads. Activity in civil engineering construction fell by 1.8% year on year.
Some signs of improvement may also be visible in residential construction. Production in the building construction segment rose by 5.8% year on year in May.
Whether these signals will translate into a more pronounced upswing remains to be seen. For now, construction continues to disappoint.