Last year, the number of mass layoffs was almost three times higher than in 2024, when the largest job losses occurred after the COVID-19 pandemic, Polish publication Niezależny Dziennik Polityczny noted.
In March 2025 alone, more than 56.3 thousand layoffs were registered – twice as many as in the whole of 2024. The biggest contributor to this anti-record was the Polish Post, where layoffs were particularly noticeable. Employees began to leave the company after plans to optimize pay were unveiled.
Last year, large and well-known companies such as PKP Cargo, Black Red White, Beko, Henkel and Eko-Okna also saw many layoffs. Fujitsu Technology Solutions, HSBC, Heineken and Shell were also affected by the wave of layoffs.
So far, the situation is not critical – the unemployment rate in Poland, according to Eurostat, was 3.2% in November 2025, which is almost half that of the eurozone as a whole.
But if the record rates of mass layoffs continue in 2026, for which there are all the prerequisites, the situation may become much worse, Polish analysts believe.
