The Polish construction market continues its struggle with shortage of professional staff. The year 2008 is likely to be a record breaking one in terms of investment volume, but staff shortages may significantly affect financial liquidity of investment projects.

The government’s agency responsible for construction of the country’s major roads, General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways (Generalna Dyrekcja Dróg Krajowych i Autostrad – GDDKiA) is planning to spend on development of the road network over PLN 20bln in 2008 and nearly PLN 250bln in the period of 2008-2012. Construction of some 515km of freeways and 625km of motorways is scheduled to begin in 2008, with 975km of freeways and 281km of motorways scheduled for beginning in the following year. Will Polish construction companies be able to handle all the contracts if even now they can hardly perform their orders in time? Managers of GDDKiA fear that the potential of local companies is insufficient.

At the turn of 20th and 21st centuries, Polish construction industry was going through a slump, with the number of employees decreasing from some 600 thousand nearly by one half. Unlike other sectors of the economy, salaries of construction workers were low and not increasing; consequently, construction professionals either changed profession or left abroad to countries of Western Europe, which were opening for Poles. This was accompanied by mass liquidation of construction schools, caused by insufficient numbers of enrolling students – young people were simply choosing other professions which would guarantee them any jobs instead of certain unemployment. The result was that – according to data of the Ministry of National Education – in 2006 all vocational schools in Poland were completed by – altogether … 9 carpenters, 16 roofers and 45 concreters-steel fixers. That state of affairs changed nearly from one year to another. Rapid revival of the economy along with a construction boom caused an unprecedented demand for construction professionals. Unfortunately, the boom was already taking place almost throughout Europe (particularly, on British Isles and in Scandinavia), attracting Polish professionals with much better conditions of employment.

Employers’ organisations estimate that in 2007 the Polish construction sector employed some 400 thousand people, but the market would immediately absorb another 100 thousand workers from practically all construction professions. Yet, for example, greatest shortages occurred in case of earthwork specialists performing preparatory works before beginning of constructions (e.g. operators of construction machines). Until recently, candidates for employment on those positions were offered fixed and stiff conditions of work, but with time employers became more open towards salary negotiations or even began outbidding for staff from competitors or using the services of headhunters, which did not take place in case of those positions in the past. Shortage of service providers (e.g. fit-out specialists) is also painful. It was, by the way, also the shortage of those specialists that upset the secondary residential market, including flats and houses which need renovation. Clients who used to buy such properties because of good prices now approach them distrustfully, fearing high costs of renovating the homes or afraid that they may not be able to find good specialists in the market.

Many Polish construction companies have launched campaigns to encourage emigrant specialists to return from Great Britain and Ireland to Poland by offering them jobs on competitive conditions. Considering the fact that the British labour market is quite saturated now, the costs of living are much higher than in Poland and the GBP exchange rate has been falling recently, the campaign may be somewhat successful although market analysts are not expecting a massive wave of returning workers. Companies expecting new profitable contracts are therefore willing to explore other possibilities of finding new staff. In most cases, attempts to acquire workers from Ukraine or Belarus fail. East Slavs prefer to go to Russia – also lacking workers, offering higher salaries but without a language barrier. Thus, Warsaw residential developers hire workers from other countries of the former USSR – Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. Yet, exotic specialists are not hired individually but through cooperation with local companies delegating organised groups of employees to particular projects. Construction sector organisations believe that a good solution may be hiring – also in an organised manner – workers from China. Nationality is of particular importance in the case of investments directly related to Poland’s preparations for the Euro 2012 soccer championships – the Chinese offer rich experience obtained during preparations for the Peking Olympic Games.