Companies in the manufacturing and logistics sector are struggling with a labor shortage and high staff turnover. They compete not only with the level of remuneration, but are increasingly investing in development and motivational programs to retain key specialists and attract new ones. The Gi Group report “Salaries in Manufacturing and Logistics: Lower and Middle-level Positions” confirms that the race for workers is not slowing down.
Main Challenges
The manufacturing and logistics sectors have long struggled with a lack of workers and high staff turnover. It is especially difficult to attract and retain lower-level workers and technical specialists, such as maintenance technicians, automation specialists, or mechanics, who are essential to ensuring production continuity.
“There are several causes for staffing deficits – primarily the aging society, thus reducing the number of professionally active people. This is compounded by challenges arising from automation and digitization of processes, which generate a demand for certain, often new, competencies, and the pool of candidates with these skills is limited,” explains Anna Wesołowska, Managing Director of Gi Group Poland S.A.
The sectors’ association with difficult working conditions and their perception as less attractive and low-paid contributes to the withdrawal of candidates to other industries. The crisis in vocational education – underfunded and unadapted to the needs of the labor market – exacerbates the problem.
The demand for workers exceeds the availability of candidates, while the openness of Poles to changing their workplace is increasing. According to this year’s Gi Group Holding “Labor Market Barometer”, 49.6% of employees in the industry plan to take such steps, while last year it was 40.2%. The study also shows that the main reason for leaving the current job would be unsatisfactory remuneration, followed by a lack of prospects for promotion and professional development.
Most sought-after specializations
According to Statistics Poland (GUS), at the end of the second quarter of 2024 there were 110,800 vacant jobs in Poland. Out of industrial processing jobs, 24,800 positions were unstaffed, 9,700 of which were in the worker and craftsman professional groups. In the transport and warehouse management section, there were 11,700 vacancies.
The most vacant jobs in the industry are in the industrial workers and craftsmen (39%) and machine operators (25.9%) professional groups. In transport and warehouse management, the main unstaffed positions remain machine operators and fitters (70.2%).
The lack of candidates for these positions increases competition between companies, which further intensifies worker turnover and forces employers to review their pay policies and implement new motivational solutions.
Variation of salaries and their impact on competitiveness
Salaries in manufacturing and logistics vary greatly, depending on both the position and geographic location. The Gi Group report shows that on the lowest positions, such as production worker, salaries range from PLN 4,500 to 6,500 gross, considering bonuses and awards. Salaries increase with qualifications. For example, welders can expect rates from 6,500 PLN to 9,000 PLN gross, electricians from 6,000 PLN to 9,500 PLN, electromechanics and movement maintenance technicians from 7,000 PLN to 11,000 PLN, and CNC machine programmers from 6,500 PLN to 10,000 PLN. In logistics, a foreman receives 6,500 – 9,000 PLN, a logistician up to 10,000 PLN monthly.
In industries with a high degree of specialization, such as shipbuilding, salaries are higher. The salary of a welder ranges from 8,000 to 12,000 PLN, an electrician from 8,500 PLN to 12,000 PLN, and an automation technician from 11,500 to 13,500 PLN.
“Double the increase of the minimum wage has raised financial expectations of employees and candidates. This translates into wage offers that often exceed the minimum wage for the lowest positions, especially when bonuses and allowances are considered. At the same time, we see a flattening of wages – pay rises are disproportionate to the rise in the minimum wage, which can lead to dissatisfaction and increased turnover,” emphasizes Beata Oczkowicz, director of permanent recruitment at Gi Group Poland S.A.
Development programs and career paths
A popular way companies deal with staffing issues is by offering extra hours of work – according to the Gi Group’s “Labor Market Barometer”, this solution is used more often in the industry than in other sectors. Employers also decide to hire foreigners, mainly from Ukraine, although – in the face of limited availability of workers from this region – people from more distant countries are increasingly recruited.
A trend worth noticing is the implementation of development programs, offering employees the opportunity to upgrade their qualifications and build career paths within the organization.
“Investing in professional development improves employees’ competencies and strengthens their loyalty to the company. In the face of labor shortages and competency gaps, which the manufacturing sector is struggling with, this solution is becoming increasingly popular and appreciated,” explains Beata Oczkowicz, director of permanent recruitment at Gi Group Poland S.A.
Companies also recognize that job seekers pay more attention to hours and work system – offers in a four-shift system, even those with higher salaries, are losing to less competitive offers with a one- or two-shift system or a system assuming night work, but with free weekends. This shows that work-life balance is becoming increasingly important for workers.
Wage pressure and future challenges
“Demographics are not in our favor – the pool of available candidates is shrinking every year, and the influx of third-country nationals does not balance this. Considering the still very low level of industry automation, which is a key sector of our economy, it is difficult to find a solution that would maintain efficiency and competitiveness with shrinking human resources and rising labor costs,” comments Agnieszka Zielinska, director of the Polish HR Forum.
The worker’s deficit puts entrepreneurs in front of a complex challenge: they must balance rising labor costs with the need to maintain cost-effectiveness, while meeting the growing expectations of workers. This requires well-thought-out recruitment and retention strategy and readiness to adapt to changing market conditions.
About the report
The report “Salaries in Production and Logistics: Lower and Mid-level Positions” was prepared by the experts and recruiters of the Gi Group. The analysis of the situation on the Polish labor market was prepared based on data from the Central Statistical Office (GUS). The salary tables were prepared by Gi Group recruitment experts in the third quarter of 2024 based on 11,032 current candidate records and the salary budgets of 184 companies in the industrial sector, 92 of which employed up to 250 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees. The report presents monthly gross salaries in PLN, from minimum to maximum, including bonuses. The employee survey on salaries was conducted by the SW Research Market and Opinion Research Agency using the CAWI method on the SW Panel. It was conducted from August 1-8, 2024 on a sample of 837 working individuals, representative in terms of gender, age and place of residence.
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Source: https://managerplus.pl/walka-o-pracownikow-w-produkcji-i-logistyce-rosna-wynagrodzenia-rosna-oczekiwania-66684
