The labour market of the Silesian voivodeship (Poland), and its determinants

The aim of this study was to characterise the labour market of the Silesian voivodeship and its determinants between 2010 and 2012, although in order to show certain trends in changes data from the beginning of the 21st century are also used as a basis whereas from the more forward-looking perspective, projections up until 2020 were used. This market is very important from the nationwide perspective, and this is due to its complexity, size (it concentrates 2 million employed people, that is 14.4% of the whole workforce of Poland) and specificity (industry still plays a crucial role). In order to achieve the objective indicated above, a set of measures relating to the number of employed people, business entities or GDP were used for the purpose of the analysis. The presented material shows the high volatility of the situation on the labour market both at the voivodeship level and individual communities – this is particularly true of the number of employed people and the rate of unemployment. An advantage of the newly created jobs over those that are shed which has been continuously recorded since 2008 and a decrease in the unemployment rate are positive symptoms. Katowice being the largest market and, moreover, characterised by the highest rank range of its impact and lowest unemployment rate have gained a dominant position in the regional labour market. Bielsko-Biała, Tychy, Gliwice and Bieruń-Lędziny County also clearly stand out against the background of other communities. The most difficult situation can be observed in Bytom, Świętochłowice, Piekary Śląskie and in the counties located in the northern part of the voivodeship, that is Częstochowa, Myszków and Zawiercie. Not only today but also in the coming decade, in terms of demand the labour market of the Silesian voivodeship will be strongly affected by its demographic situation; population decline, ageing population, migration, including, in particular, foreign migration will cause a decline in the labour force. By contrast, the labour supply will depend on an economic factor, that is mainly an improvement in the economic situation in Poland and around the world and a reduction in the cost of labour (external determinants). In the next few years the role of innovation (including the technological factor) which will affect the labour demand in terms of quantity and, perhaps to a greater extent, in terms of quality (changes in the structure of the labour market) will become more and more significant.