Case summary Polish workers in Norway are considering moving home because of the weak krone exchange rate. In 2019, 1,860 Polish workers left Norway, and in the first quarter of 2020, 700 workers have left the country. The krona has weakened against the Polish zloty over the past ten years, which has reduced the purchasing power of Polish migrant workers in their homeland. Polish workers make up the largest group of migrant workers in Norway, with almost 110,000 people. NHO expresses concern about this trend, as Norwegian business depends on this workforce. Changes in the rules for hiring also make it more difficult for foreign-born people to work in Norway. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s ​​journalists before publication. – I have not bought a flat. I rent. I live alone and that’s how it will be for the next few years because I’m thinking of moving home to Poland, says Jakub Kaczmarek. Jakub works as an electrician in Sandnes, and is not alone in making plans to move home to Poland. This spring there were around 100,000 Polish wage earners in Norway. That is 5,000 less than in the summer of last year. During the first quarter of this year, 700 Poles left the country, according to figures from Statistics Norway. How many of these are employees is unknown. If the trend continues, labor migration this year will surpass last year’s. A weak krone exchange rate gets part of the debt. In the last ten years, the krona has weakened against both the dollar, the euro and the Polish zloty. In 2014, one zloty cost 1.9 Norwegian kroner. Ten years later, he costs 2.8 Norwegian kroner. This means that Polish migrant workers who work in Norway have had their purchasing power weakened in their home country. Jakub Kaczmarek works as an electrician in Sandnes. Now he is considering moving home to Poland. It will be too expensive to live in Norway. Photo: Jakub Krzsystof Spadlo / news Largest group of migrant workers – I used to commute before, and I can say with certainty that it is too expensive for commuters to live like that, says Lukasz Marszalek. Marszalek is the leader of INorge, an organization for the Polish community in the Stavanger region. – Maintenance costs have increased and the krone is weaker. Commuters notice the difference in the currencies, he claims. Lukasz Marszalek is head of in Norway. There are well over 100,000 Poles in Norway today. Photo: Jakub Krzsystof Spadlo / news Poles are the largest labor immigration group in Norway. According to figures from Statistics Norway, there are just under 110,000 Poles in Norway. Norwegian business is dependent on this workforce, says NHO. Bad news for companies in Norway Tone Grindland is regional director of NHO Rogaland. She says there has been a trend for several years now where more foreign-born workers are moving back to their home countries. – The exchange rate of the krone is part of the reason why more people want to move home and work in their own country, and that is because you earn less in Norway now than you did before, she says. Tone Grindland is regional director of NHO Rogaland. She says the krone exchange rate is one reason why more people are moving home from Norway. Photo: Tom Haga / NHO Rogaland At the same time, changes in tenancy regulations make it more difficult for people born abroad to work in Norway. – There is less flexibility in the working relationship, says Grindland. In Norway, there is a major skills shortage in companies. Thus, she believes it is bad news that workers feel they have to move from the country. – The companies clearly tell us at NHO that they need more people and more expertise. There are many tasks that will remain unsolved, she says. The Polish electrician in Sandnes says it is impossible not to notice that the Norwegian krone is weak. – The majority of Poles who work in Norway have to support their families and pay for a house. Therefore, this is very taxing, he says. Published 26/07/2024, at 20.48
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A weak krone exchange rate is causing Poles to move from Norway. Jakub in Sandnes is considering moving himself – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
