Preface

The year 2016 is the 20th anniversary of Poland’s membership in the OECD. During this time, Poland has shown impressive economic growth and improvement in well-being. Poland was one of the few OECD countries in which growth remained positive during the financial crisis. While growth has rebounded from the abrupt slowdown in 2012-13, Poland’s low employment rate hinders prospects for future growth going forward. Like its peers in the OECD, Poland is grappling with how to create jobs in sufficient quantities and of sufficient quality to move towards a path of strong and resilient growth.

Over recent years, the work of the OECD LEED Programme on Designing Local Skills Strategies, Building Flexibility and Accountability into Local Employment Services, Breaking out of Policy Silos, Leveraging Training and Skills Development in SMEs, and Skills for Competitiveness has demonstrated that local strategies to boost skills and job creation require the participation of many different actors across employment, training, economic development, and social welfare portfolios. Employers, unions and the non-profit sector are also key partners in ensuring that education and training programmes provide the skills needed in the labour markets of today and the future.

The OECD Reviews on Local Job Creation deliver evidence-based and practical recommendations on how to better support employment and economic development at the local level. This report builds on sub-national data analysis and consultations at the national level and with local stakeholders in two case study areas. It provides a comparative framework to understand the role of the local level in contributing to more and better quality jobs. The report can help national, regional and local policy makers in Poland build effective and sustainable partnerships at the local level, which join-up efforts and achieve stronger outcomes. Co-ordinated policies can help workers find suitable jobs, while also stimulating entrepreneurship and productivity, which increases the quality of life and prosperity within a community as well as throughout the country.

I would like to warmly thank the Ministry of Economic Development for their active participation and support of the study, as well as the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy for their ongoing contributions.

Mari Kiviniemi,

Deputy Secretary-General, OECD