Unemployment in Poland is mainly structural, which is reflected in structural imbalances between labour demand and labour supply with respect to vocational qualifications, professions and spatial deployment. The main factor determining unemployment is the necessity for structural changes in Polish economy caused by its transformation and integration with the European Union, aimed at enhancement of economic innovation, competitiveness and effectiveness.
Active labour market policy plays an important role in the case of high structural unemployment. Efficiently applied instruments of active labour market policy can reduce this unemployment. Therefore, the main aim of this paper is to evaluate the role of active labour market policy in Poland in 2005-2010 taking into consideration the characteristics of its main instruments, its participants and expenditures.