Is it worth employing workers from Ukraine?
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Is it worth employing workers from Ukraine?

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Many employers who are considering the possibility of employing workers from Ukraine have many dilemmas regarding this. They concern many issues, the spectrum of which is very wide. Before hiring an employee from the East, you should answer questions about formal and logistical issues, as well as about the language barrier aspects. In addition, the qualifications needed for a given position remain to be verified. Regardless of the decision, it is worth taking it calmly and thinking carefully about everything.

In recent years, many companies in Poland have decided to employ workers from Ukraine. Such a decision is often forced on them by the situation on the labor market, which is currently so difficult that every industry is struggling with job vacancies. The matter is not made easier by the fact that there are fewer and fewer economically active people in Poland, which is mainly influenced by the country’s demographic structure. Recourse to employing foreign workers is the only solution in many industries, as otherwise there would be no manpower.

It is worth noting that the same solution is used by foreign companies from Western countries, which willingly employ Poles and representatives of other nations from the east of the European Union. This shows that this is an effective strategy and allows companies to function calmly, even in such difficult conditions. However, it is worth remembering that hiring employees is a rather complicated process,during which many issues need to be considered. If, in addition, you are considering hiring an employee from another country, the number of questions that need to be answered increases even more.

Employees from Ukraine and formal issues

There is a small gray area of ​​Ukrainian workers in Poland, but most of them reside legally in Poland and work under fully legal contracts. Ukrainians who did not get a permanent residence permit, for example because of their marriage to a Polish woman, are staying in Poland thanks to the permits they received. This means that they can legally sign an employment contract or a civil contract with the employer who wants to hire them. Tax issues depend on the type of employment and the exact conditions under which a person resides in the country. There are different types of stay.

In the case of Ukrainians permanently residing in Poland, the most basic form is employment on the basis of a work permit issued by an appropriate office. When employing such an employee, the employer is obliged to employ him under such conditions,which do not contradict the provisions in his work permit. There is one more gateway. It is the legal stay of Ukrainians who can stay in Poland for up to 90 days. Then a work permit is not required.Ukrainian workers use this wicket to work in seasonal industries such as horticulture, agriculture or tourism. It must be remembered that taxes and all benefits are also paid for employees from Ukraine, but the procedures themselves differ slightly from those used in the case of employing Poles. You have to remember this in order not to run into formal problems, and it is best to hire specialists who specialize in this.

Advantages and disadvantages of hiring workers from Ukraine

Hiring workers from Ukraine has its advantages and disadvantages. The advantages certainly include the fact that the Ukrainians are filling the gap that has formed on the market when so many local residents have left Poland. Among Ukrainians, you can often find qualified specialists who are passionate about specific professions. There are drivers, machine operators, bricklayers and other specialists in the construction industry among them. It is not uncommon to find employees who have the full qualifications required for a given position.

Hiring workers from UkraineIt also entails some difficulties. In addition to formal issues that can be dealt with quite easily, there are also organizational issues in the company. Ukrainian is significantly different from Polish and although Ukrainians learn Polish quickly, they may have a problem with it at first. While it is not so important in the construction industry, some sectors of the service industry can be very hard hit and it can be a very serious barrier. It is a consolation that there are many Ukrainians in Poland who have mastered the language fluently or at least communicatively during the few years of living here.

When employing such people, you must also take into account that employees from Ukrainethey do not always treat jobs as targets and often change them, and this means the risk of faster rotation in one job, which is certainly not beneficial to any company. The balance of profits and losses must be done by each entrepreneur on their own and consider what aspects they care most about. On this basis, a decision is made as to how much you can agree to and what is unacceptable for a particular type of position.