Thursday, 15 January 2026
The gig economy, based on short-term, project-driven work rather than long-term employment contracts, is set to play an increasingly important role in labour markets, including in Poland. According to experts from Personnel Service, traditional permanent employment will not vanish, but it will no longer be the default model of cooperation.
The gig economy allows workers to deliver specific projects for multiple clients simultaneously, instead of being tied to a single employer. While this model has so far been most common among developers, marketers and creative professionals, it is now expanding into a broader range of sectors. Growing use of artificial intelligence and rapid changes in business conditions are making flexible, project-based work more attractive for companies than fixed, year-round employment in some roles.
Experts argue that this shift does not signal the end of permanent jobs, but rather their transformation. Full-time employment may become one of several parallel forms of cooperation, alongside project contracts and freelancing, rather than an automatic standard.
“Gig economy is not a rebellion against full-time work, but a response to the growing volatility of business,” said Krzysztof Inglot, labour market expert and founder of Personnel Service. “In the era of widespread use of artificial intelligence, companies will increasingly need specific competences, but not necessarily for 40 hours a week throughout the year. Instead, demand will grow for intensive, short-term work on concrete projects, implementations or crisis situations. Increasingly, organisations will also turn to experts for two or three days a week rather than hiring them full time.”
According to Personnel Service, one likely direction of change concerns highly qualified specialists and managers. In areas such as IT, marketing, consulting or cybersecurity, a model often described as “fractional work” is gaining ground. Under this approach, an expert or manager works simultaneously for several organisations, dedicating part of their time to each.
“For many organisations, employing a full-time marketing or IT director is now a cost they either do not want or cannot afford,” Inglot noted. “Instead, they prefer to engage a top expert for one or two days a week. For specialists, this means greater independence and often higher income, while companies gain flexibility and access to key competences exactly when they are needed.”
At the other end of the labour market, the gig economy is also reshaping simple service work, including driving, courier services and other operational roles. In these areas, project-based work lowers the barrier to entry and allows companies to respond quickly to fluctuations in demand. At the same time, it is contributing to a growing divide between more expensive but stable full-time staff and a flexible group of gig workers serving seasonal or short-term needs.
This pattern is already visible in sectors such as e-commerce and logistics, where demand for labour can rise sharply for part of the year and then ease in subsequent months. However, experts warn that this model carries risks, particularly employment instability and limited access to social protection. As a result, the development of systems that ensure basic security for project workers, including access to healthcare and pensions, will become increasingly important.
A third trend identified by Personnel Service involves the spread of gig economy principles within large organisations themselves. Some companies are creating internal project platforms that allow full-time employees to take on additional assignments in other departments.
“This is an attempt to reconcile job stability with the flexibility employees increasingly expect,” Inglot said. “Companies that do not offer such opportunities risk becoming training grounds for freelancers, educating people who will then leave to work independently.”
In the longer term, experts believe permanent employment will remain part of the labour market, but its role may change. Full-time contracts are likely to be reserved for positions where long-term relationships, loyalty and accumulated know-how are essential and difficult to replace with project-based work.
“The labour market is no longer uniform,” Inglot concluded. “We are entering an era of choosing between models rather than relying on a single dominant one. This can benefit both companies and employees, provided these changes are accompanied by an adequate social security framework.”
Source: Personnel Service
