About 120,000 Ukrainians were officially employed in Poland in the first half of 2009, the single largest immigrant group in the country, the PAP news agency reported Monday.
However, Anna Kordasiewicz, a sociologist from Warsaw University, suggested that could be just the tip of an iceberg since there were no accurate figures concerning Ukrainians working in Poland, legally or illegally.
"Often, the livelihood of a whole family in Ukraine hinges on income earned in Poland", she said.
According to Anna Rostocka from the Warsaw office of the International Labor Organization, Ukrainian women rarely find a job in line with their qualifications.
Some work as foreign language teachers, for example, but the majority are employed as cleaners and housemaids. They work eight to 10 hours a day, earning 10 to 35 zlotys per hour (about 2.5-8.5 euro).
In 2007, 15 percent of Polish families said they employed a Ukrainian maid legally. Their main assets, in the eyes of Polish employers, are readiness to accept lower wages and work flexible hours. Women from Ukraine are also employed in the farming sector, mainly for seasonal jobs such as fruit picking.
Citizens of Ukraine, Russia, Belarus and Moldova can work in Poland without a permit for six months, the agency said.
MOSCOW/WARSAW, January 4 (RIA Novosti)
