Jobs in Poland

paddyblue

I'm wondering what job prospects are like for non-polish in Poland?
I have a diploma qualification & 4/5 years experience in Ireland.
My Polish is basic but i'm learning (slowly).

I'm contemplating moving over there for a while in a year or two & I am curious if I can get a decant job - not barwork / hotel / shop assistant / site labourer etc (no disrespect intended).

Also, i earn quite a good salary in my current job, would I be taking a big drop in wages if I moved over there? Whats the average (not minimum) wage over there (Southern poland)?

Any help appreciated.

WooPeeA

paddyblue wrote: »

I'm wondering what job prospects are like for non-polish in Poland?
I have a diploma qualification & 4/5 years experience in Ireland.
My Polish is basic but i'm learning (slowly).

I'm contemplating moving over there for a while in a year or two & I am curious if I can get a decant job - not barwork / hotel / shop assistant / site labourer etc (no disrespect intended).

Also, i earn quite a good salary in my current job, would I be taking a big drop in wages if I moved over there? Whats the average (not minimum) wage over there (Southern poland)?

Any help appreciated.

I'll try to answer you..


I'm wondering what job prospects are like for non-polish in Poland?

There's lots of jobs at the moment. Economy is growing very fast, new jobs are created and Poland need people to work. Salaries are growing about 10-20% a year, depend of the sector.

Unfortunately Polish is essential for most of the jobs. You say you have diploma and 4-5 years experience. Basic Polish might be very helpful. I know there's many people working in Krakow and other cities speaking no Polish at all... I think it all depend of the company and what kind of people are they looking for.

I can recommend you this forum: http://www.polishforums.com/

It's made for immigrants living in Poland. Forum is in English so no worry about language barrier. There's lots of users from English speaking countries, including Irish. You can find there many useful informations about job, law and daily problems and ask about things.. Poles are good people and I'm pretty sure they will help you there.

You must be aware that Poland is much more bureaucratic than Ireland and its laws may look very complicated for newcomers. Many people found help on that forum.


I am curious if I can get a decant job - not barwork / hotel / shop assistant / site labourer etc (no disrespect intended).

I think it's much harder to find a job in Ireland than Poland. Polish job market seems to be free form recession. Especially construction business is doing very well there (not only labors but also architects, engineers and managers).

However I don't know how does it look like in your sector (you haven't post any details) and with basic language.


Also, i earn quite a good salary in my current job, would I be taking a big drop in wages if I moved over there? Whats the average (not minimum) wage over there (Southern poland)?

Average salary is about 3000 PLN (zloty) which is about €900.

It may looks small for people from western Europe but if you compare it to the prices (about 3 times cheaper than Irish) you will know that its not that bad. If you earn 3000PLN its fairly enough for rent, all the bills etc. and you can save something as well (for holidays or trip for Ireland).

Salaries depend on the region. I heard somewhere that best earning people live in Sopot (small but nice touristic town located in the north). Warsaw is usually not bad for money (in Polish standards), but real estates (including renting) are very overpriced - sometimes Dublin prices..


I don't know about the south except the fact that it's really nice place, good regional food and drinks and people with funny accent.


Be also prepared for the weather, much different than Irish. Hot dry summers (very often many weeks without any rain) with temperature up to 42 C and cold winters with snow and -15 C outside. The temperature difference between summer and winter is very often about 60 degrees so many people who used to live in other climates get sick easly in the first months. Warm and good jacket as well as suntan oil is the minimum requirement there.

paddyblue

Dziekuje bardzo...
I actually work in Construction so your news is positive. But I should step up my polish learning, because i'm quite bad at languages and Polish ain't the easiest language.
I'll check out the link to the forum too when I get some time.

Cheers

paddyblue

Sorry WooPeeA one question -
3000PLN - that is earnings per month?

WooPeeA

paddyblue wrote: »

Sorry WooPeeA one question -
3000PLN - that is earnings per month?

Yes, per month. When you pay rent and bills (usually 800-1500pln, depend of the city) you still have most of your salary. Remember that live is cheap so earning 3000PLN you won't live in worst level of live than in Ireland I think.


Typical prices:

Bread - 2 zl (€0,40)
2L Milk - 3 zl (€0.85)
Beer - 2-3 zl (€0,70 - 0,90)
Coffee / Tea pack - 3-5 zl (€0,90 - 1,50)
Frozen food bag (500g) - 4 zl (€1,20)

Oil - 4,40/L (€1,35)
Single ticket (public transport) - 1,50 zl (€0,40) in Warsaw



Construction is usually well paid. I used to work as sales representative of one of construction companies in Poland so know something about it. Typical salaries:

Normal worker - from 3000 PLN
Professional welder - from 4000 PLN
Workers working on height constructions - from 4000 PLN
Underwater welder - from 10000 PLN (really dangerous job)


I don't know much about office workers but I think difference between them is not that big.

paddyblue

But Petrol is as expensive as in Ireland, yes? even more expensive if memory serves me correct.

WooPeeA

Yes, unfortunately it is. Same with diesel and gas.
But insurance of the car is much much cheaper than Irish one.

Kruk

If I was you I'd try to find any Irish ppl living in Poland. They could tell you their own opinions about it. WooPeeA gave you really practical information but the thing is it's really hard to live alone (wherever) if you don't know the language. Also lots of Polish lads are not as friendly as Irish what can be a bit frustrating for foreigners.

Don't get me wrong, Poland is a big and beautiful country but if you want to live over there, you need to be well prepared. It's better to know that "before" than "after"

xbox36016

Poland is not cheaper than iraland my casuson was thare i said a meal 3caures costs 50 eruos

WooPeeA

xbox36016 wrote: »

Poland is not cheaper than iraland my casuson was thare i said a meal 3caures costs 50 eruos

You can pay 10, 20, 50 and even 500.. Depend where you go. But usually it's cheaper i'd say.

paddyblue

I've been over there about 6/7 times in the last 2 years - cost of living is definetly cheaper......

WooPeeA - 1
xbox36016 - 0

eth0_

xbox36016 wrote: »

Poland is not cheaper than iraland my casuson was thare i said a meal 3caures costs 50 eruos

What?

scruff321

paddyblue wrote: »

I've been over there about 6/7 times in the last 2 years - cost of living is definetly cheaper......

WooPeeA - 1
xbox36016 - 0

i lived there for the summer,certain things are cheaper food,drink and accomadation bar that in general most things are either the same as ireland or more expensive electrical goods for example

paddyblue

scruff321 wrote: »

i lived there for the summer,certain things are cheaper food,drink and accomadation bar that in general most things are either the same as ireland or more expensive electrical goods for example

I was referring to the essentials - food, drink, roof over the head, etc.

I agree that some commodities are as expensive (clothes, electrical, etc...) but the very basic cost of living is definetly cheaper

WooPeeA

paddyblue wrote: »

I was referring to the essentials - food, drink, roof over the head, etc.

I agree that some commodities are as expensive (clothes, electrical, etc...) but the very basic cost of living is definetly cheaper

I wouldn't say clothes are more expensive.. Don't compare it with Penny's etc as the quality in those stores is far from perfection (all made in china), but compare it with ordinary Irish small family clothes shop. I'd say it's the same if not cheaper in Poland.

paddyblue

I was saying that clothes are as expensive...not more.

Also, I wasn't refering to the 'home' or 'local' brands (which are less expensive i agree). I was talking baout the 'high street' labels, which i believe costs almost the same as here.

scruff321

WooPeeA wrote: »

I wouldn't say clothes are more expensive.. Don't compare it with Penny's etc as the quality in those stores is far from perfection (all made in china), but compare it with ordinary Irish small family clothes shop. I'd say it's the same if not cheaper in Poland.

lol pennys all the friends i had in poland who'd been to ireland loved it! to be fair WooPeeA there are very few small irish family clothes shops well in cities they are very rare,i found clothes in the 2 polish cities i had been in to be more expensive in every shop i was in.

WooPeeA

OK, I think you're right now.

jamaica

The prices in Poland have gone up recently to the extent that you're paying nearly the same money for dinner out as in Ireland. I moved to Poland from Ireland ca 3 months ago so I have the freshest news :-D
My husband works in Construction over here and his salary is the same if not better than in Ireland; he's a qualified engineer but has been working as a QS for a long time.
The best bet would be to look for a job with a British/Irish/Scandinavian construction company operating over here. Try recruiters such as Grafton, Manpower, Hays maybe.. Or google 'construction jobs in Poland' and you'll be able to get an idea of the salaries and all.
As I said - the costs of living have become ridiculously high. But still, food is cheaper and services are cheaper, cars are cheaper, petrol is the same, clothes are the same, the booze is alot cheaper tho... :-D

syklops

xbox36016 wrote: »

Poland is not cheaper than iraland my casuson was thare i said a meal 3caures costs 50 eruos

I had dinner , in the centre of Krakow for 2 people with 2 beers and a generous glass of Jonny Walker Red Label and it came to just under 15 euro.

What did your casuson eat?

trevorku

I'd personally only suggest an english teacher job as its one of the only ones which pay a decent salary, other than that if your irish employer transfers you to poland and pays you same salary then that would be ideal.

Malice

xbox36016 wrote: »

Poland is not cheaper than iraland my casuson was thare i said a meal 3caures costs 50 eruos

As others have said, there are expensive places in Poland, just like anywhere else in the world but in general eating out is a lot cheaper than here in Ireland. Also, what's a casuson?

WooPeeA wrote: »

I can recommend you this forum: http://www.polishforums.com/

It's made for immigrants living in Poland. Forum is in English so no worry about language barrier.

That looks like quite a useful forum. Thank you for the link.