More than 5 million people in Poland have disabilities, according to Statistics Poland, but their employment rate remains low at 18.5%. The gap between people with disabilities and the rest of the population is substantially wider than the EU average. Experts say their skills and experience remain underused, citing employers’ concerns and lack of accessibility among the main barriers. The Avalon Foundation’s “See You at Work!” campaign aims to help remove them.
“The labour market is changing rapidly. Employers can see that they are beginning to lack specialists their organisations need, yet there is still a very large group of potential employees who are not considered: people with disabilities. We currently have around 800,000 people with disability certification who are not economically active,” Anna Łoginow, a human resources specialist and career adviser at the Avalon Foundation, told Newseria.
“There are more than 5 million people with disabilities in Poland. That does not mean they could all work in every field. Nevertheless, there is still a group of around 20% who could be economically active, so there is a great deal to do.”
Employment gap exceeds the EU average
Eurostat data show Poland’s employment gap between people with and without disabilities was 35 percentage points in 2025, compared with an EU average of 24.2 points—one of the weakest results in the bloc.
“EU countries with much higher activity rates among people with disabilities include Czechia, Germany and Estonia. We can see that our neighbours can take such action, so it may be worth examining their approach and implementing some of those measures in Poland,” Łoginow said.
Statistics Poland reports that 17.8 million people were economically active in the second quarter of 2026, with unemployment at 3.2%. According to the Avalon Foundation, the employment rate among people with disabilities was 18.5%, while unemployment stood at 8.6%. At the end of 2025, 54,100 people with disabilities remained registered at labour offices; 74,900 registered during the year. There were 30,400 job offers addressed to this group.
“The biggest barrier for people with disabilities in the labour market is employers’ fear. Many studies show that the crucial step is to overcome barriers and hire someone with a disability. It then turns out that they transform perspectives, have a very positive effect on the team and share skills, abilities and qualifications. Many people with disabilities, as their activity in NGOs shows, are excellent leaders who run teams and deliver many new projects,” said Małgorzata Lorek, president of the State Fund for Rehabilitation of Disabled People (PFRON).
The 2021 “Employer Says Yes” survey supports this assessment. Employers cited a lack of experience in employing people with disabilities (64%), concern about lower productivity (56%) and limited knowledge of the benefits (44%) as reasons for not hiring them.
Accessibility begins before recruitment
“In my practice, employers increasingly refer to accessibility. Their first thought is usually architectural accessibility. For me, it begins much earlier, before a person with a disability arrives at work: with a properly written job advertisement, the team coming together to plan recruitment, and recognising that an employee with a disability also needs a promotion path, development opportunities and a way into the team. All on equal terms with other colleagues,” said Justyna Cuże, an accessibility and HR trainer and consultant featured in the campaign.
Avalon Foundation research indicates that people with disabilities still encounter discrimination in recruitment and a lack of trust from employers. Hiring them is sometimes seen as an organisational or financial burden rather than an investment in diversity and workplace development.
“Many of us would certainly expect, above all, greater awareness among employers and for recruitment decisions to assess our competencies, skills, qualifications and knowledge—not our disability,” said Robert Zarzecki, an entrepreneur and president of the Widzimy Inaczej Foundation, another campaign participant.
“What does professional development mean for people with disabilities? For the clients I support in career counselling, it means someone recognises their potential, their investment in learning and skills, and their experience, and treats them like any other team member. They can carry out different tasks, develop and find fulfilment,” Cuże explained.
Poland’s 2021 census recorded 637,600 people with disabilities who had completed higher education. Among respondents surveyed by PFRON, 26.7% had taken vocational courses to improve their skills and 20.1% courses leading to professional qualifications.
Campaign highlights professional potential
“‘See You at Work!’ primarily changes the perspective, showing a different way of seeing people with disabilities as potential employees. We want to challenge the fact that they are often invisible in the labour market, overlooked by employers and not considered. That also has a major impact on everyday life. Our campaign therefore addresses support for people with disabilities, but above all support for businesses that can open up to a diverse workforce,” Łoginow said.
All campaign participants are people with disabilities who are professionally active, demonstrating that their working identities are defined by skills, experience and personality. Posters use familiar workplace expressions such as “I see no obstacles”, “I deliver” and “I handle it straight away”. An accompanying employer guide offers practical accessibility and recruitment solutions. The campaign is co-financed by PFRON.
“Supporting the employment of people with disabilities is a social responsibility shared by everyone who shapes the labour market and lives in society. It involves good working conditions and suitable jobs, but also how we coexist. This is not a one-sided process: both sides must engage. Looking at employment through opportunities rather than challenges offers a way forward. Demographics and an ageing society show that this is no longer really a choice but a necessity,” Lorek said.
Statistics Poland projects a substantial decline in the working-age population. By 2060 it could fall to 13.3 million under the low scenario or 16.6 million under the high scenario, compared with 22.2 million in 2022: declines of 40% and 25%, respectively.
Source: Newseria.
