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This paper addresses the problem of transport systems in remote areas, defined by a set of constraints deriving from a sparse population, infrequent transportation location means stops and cost-effectiveness of the system. Remote areas attractive to tourists additionally require transportation services designed with respect to changeable demand and the necessity to provide transportation solutions limiting detrimental influence on the environment. This paper aims to identify and assess the perspectives for developing innovative mobility solutions for residents and tourists in remote areas in line with sustainable development and evaluate factors supporting or hindering the development of the selected perspectives. The results of a Delphi study with 23 experts from seven EU Member States, Russia and Norway, enabled the identification of factors shaping the future of mobility in peripheral areas, including IT-supported multimodal transport systems, demand-responsive transport and transport services tailored to the specific needs of different user groups.

In this paper the authors analyse the conditions of effective communication in the mentoring process. In the literature on the subject effective business communication is considered as a key to planning, leading, organizing and controlling the resources of organizations to achieve their objectives. Still, communication models in the mentoring network have not been of interest to researchers yet. The aim of this study was to identify the factors that influence the effectiveness of communication in the mentoring process. The authors created a theoretical model of communication in the mentoring process which became a basis for primary research conducted among 103 mentors and 119 mentees in Poland. It occurred that the factors influencing the effectiveness of communication in the mentoring process are similar in both groups. Next, the authors incorporated the Exploratory Factor Analysis and Cronbach’s alpha reliability test of different factors influencing the effectiveness of communication in the mentoring process. The results proved that all the developed scales demonstrated reliability above the recommended threshold. The final stage involved developing a regression model which allowed to identify the factors influencing the effectiveness of communication in the mentoring process. Those factors are: non-verbal channels and tools of communication, written and oral channels and tools of communication as well as social engagement in the mentoring process.

Current labour market is influenced by uncertainty posed by challenges of occurring trends. Those trends are on the one hand shaped by demographic changes influencing labour supply and on the other hand transformations provided by 4th industrial revolution. Emerging innovative technological development, in addition to demographics and rising inequality, brings widespread automation and irreversible shifts in the structure of jobs giving rise to new opportunities but also creating new areas of uncertainty. The unpredictability of the labour market sets new tasks for the institutions supporting better adjustment of labour supply to demand needs. Crucial institution realizing those tasks are career counsellors who provide their service for different groups of clients. Effective career guidance is determined by comprehensive competences of counsellors. It should be noted that with regard to competences in the context of Industry 4.0, most of the research to date has focused on the analysis of employees' competences rather than on the competences of career counsellors. The development of the future labour market is subject to a hitherto unknown transformation. These premises, as well as the originality and validity of the research, both in the national and European dimension, prompted the authors to conduct innovative qualitative study. The aim of the article is to identify future competences of career counsellors in line with the ongoing trends on the labour market

The aim of the article is to assess real changes taking place on CEE labour markets over the last fifteen years, taking into account as the initial point of analysis – 2004, i.e. the moment of extension of the EU by the first CEE countries and as a final point of analysis – 2019. The research was conducted in two stages. The authors made comparisons with the use of the TOPSIS method, which allowed for creating rankings of CEE countries in terms of labour market situation in the analysed years. The second stage of the study involved the analysis of relations between employment and GDP by an estimation of the multiple regression model. The conducted analysis proves that CEE countries are diversified when it comes to the labour market situation. These countries are also characterized by significant dynamics of changes in the labour market. First published online 05 July 2021

The aim of the paper is to identify determinants of the efficiency of service companies from two Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries4—Poland and Belarus. These transition economies represent different economic and systemic conditions. That is why it is worth analyzing whether external conditions determine internal efficiency factors in service companies. In order to achieve that aim quantitative research was conducted among 305 Polish and Belarusian service enterprises. The research results presented significant differences in responses between the two countries. For Polish enterprises the main determinants of efficiency were above all connected with competent and skilled staff. Belarussian companies regarded as efficiency factors which determine the demand level by means of access toward foreign markets and possibilities of internationalization. It proves that CEECs are not homogeneous and they represent different levels of economic development as well as the different conditions of running a business.

The situation in the labour market is conditioned by many factors that often have a local dimension. Identification of different levels of development of labour demand as well as potential of labour supply on the local level is a crucial element of diagnosis of reasons for regional and local diversity and implementation of an appropriate labour market policy. As there is available a variety of indicators describing regional labour relations, there is a need to create synthetic measure to include different aspects of the labour market situation. The aim of the paper is identification of the diversity of the situation in the local labour markets of all 16 Polish voivodeships. At the first step, a synthetic measure including eight variables was created. At the second stage 16 Polish voivodeships were clustered following Ward’s and k-means methods. As the authors assume that the position of voivodeship labour markets is connected with the position of capital cities, the analysis was deepened by ranking voivodeship cities based on Hellwig’s method. As a result of conducted research and the classification of Polish voivodeships and their capital cities in the context of the situation in the labour market, there have been identified the reasons of regions’ positions and proposed recommendations for the labour market policy.

Research background: The article presents the problem of youth unemployment from the perspective of employers in Poland exemplified by the research results conducted in Podlaskie province. The unemployment rate of young people in Poland in the age range 15-29, reached 14.2% in 2015. For comparison, at that time the average for the EU was higher by almost two percentage points, and the decline compared to the year 2013 was lower than in Poland. It turns out that higher education in Poland has lost its importance in the process of hiring staff. Employers are increasingly less likely to look at the educational background of candidates, as they focus more on their experience and specific skills. Purpose of the article: The purpose of this article is to present the results of re-search regarding the diagnosis of the situation of young people on the labour market in Poland from the perspective of employers. In particular, there were competency gaps and other reasons for not recruiting young people which have been identified. Methods: Two types of research were carried out with employers from Podlaskie province: quantitative, using CATI/CAWI and qualitative, using the technique of IDI. Quantitative research was carried out on a sample of 346 respondents. A qualitative study was carried out among 16 companies registered in Podlaskie province. Findings & Value added: Among the reasons for not employing young people which were most often mentioned by the entrepreneurs in quantitative research there were financial reasons. During the interviews, employers indicated the reasons for not employing young people such as "lack of appropriate qualifications," "specific skills" or simply "practical preparation for work." Employers were asked about the competence gaps of young people, and they pointed out that they lack experience, initiative and entrepreneurship, as well as learning skills.

W dobie innowacji wymuszanych przez intensywną konkurencję w wymiarze globalnym współczesne przedsiębiorstwo, zwłaszcza usługowe, musi na bieżąco dostosowywać swoje działania do zmieniających się warunków rynkowych. Jednym z wymogów w warunkach "technologizacji" działalności gospodarczych, warunkujących przetrwanie i rozwój przedsiębiorstw, jest umiejętność podwyższania poziomu wydajności pracy. Określenie determinant wydajności pracy w danym przedsiębiorstwie w znacznym stopniu oddziałuje na budowanie jego pozycji konkurencyjnej i przewagi rynkowej. Przedsiębiorstwa, ponieważ są narażone na znaczną niepewność i ryzyko, w szczególnym stopniu są zmuszone do poszukiwania sposobów racjonalizacji kosztów i zwiększania efektywności. Celem artykułu jest identyfikacja metod zwiększania wydajności pracy we współczesnym przedsiębiorstwie usługowym. Obraną metodą badawczą jest analiza źródeł wtórych, a także studium przypadku konkretnego przedsiębiorstwa usługowego.

Purpose: The aim of this article is to assess real changes taking place on regional labour markets in Poland over the last ten years. The starting point for the analysis was 2008 – the time of the economic crisis – and it was compared to 2018, a year marked by a significant improvement in the economy, including the labour market. Design/Methodology/Approach: To assess the initial and current situation on regional labour markets, the authors use variables obtained from CSO resources, diagnosing the situation in individual Polish voivodships. The identified set of variables served to create a synthetic indicator reflecting the situation on regional labour markets in Poland as a derivative of the condition of the economy. In order to conduct a comparative analysis of regional labour markets, the authors made rankings of voivodships for the two analysed periods with the use of the Hellwig method. The next stage of the study involved an estimation of the multiple regression model, which explains how the identified factors (determinants) affect the position of voivodships in the context of their employment potential. The authors adopted a ratio of the employed per 1,000 inhabitants as a dependent variable, while the variables determining the demand for labour were considered as independent variables. Findings: A ten-year comparison period adopted for the analyses showed that the economic crisis did not have a major impact on economic and labour market changes in Polish regions. Practical Implications: The proposed research methodology is universal and can be used to assess regional labour markets in other countries. Originality/Value: The conducted research allowed for the identification of factors influencing the situation on the labour market and the assessment of changes taking place on regional labour markets., peer-reviewed

In the era of aging of European society, there is a need to rationalize public expenditures. As a result, it is crucial to increase the efficiency of public policy. It significantly refers to labor market policy, as on the one hand, it is responsible for activation of the unemployed, passive resources, increasing employability and optimal usage of labor supply. On the other hand, public entities conducting labor market policy (mainly public employment services—hereafter PES) are obliged to efficient management of public funds. The effectiveness of PES is strongly determined by the engagement of employers in realization of labor market instruments. Cooperation of PES with relevant stakeholders is needed to build up alliances for active policy. There are different models of such cooperation, with variant levels of partnership, communication channels, and mutual services. The main objective of the article is to determine the perspective cooperation model of PES and private companies in Poland. The quantitative study was realized among large companies in Podlaskie province. It is one of the Polish peripheral regions characterized by lower than average labor demand, lower purchasing power, and higher unemployment rate.

Pursuant to the concept of inclusive growth, the authors analyze the transition economies of Central and Eastern European countries, which have become EU members (Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia). CEE countries characterized by comparable historic and economic backgrounds now seem to reach diversified stages of development. The objective of the study is to identify the level of inclusive growth among CEE countries by taking into account indicators assigned to its seven pillars. The article&rsquo, s thesis is that CEE countries represent social and economic heterogeneity as well as varied levels of sustainable development. Research methods included the application of the principal components analysis and the multivariate analysis. For a literature review, the bibliometric analysis was conducted with the visualization prepared by the VOSviewer software. The main findings suggest that Estonia, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic seem to exhibit the highest level of inclusive growth while Bulgaria and Romania represent the lowest level of indicators measured.

Referring to the concept of inclusive growth, the authors analyse the transition economies of the Central and Eastern European countries, which are the current EU members (Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia). That region was selected as the CEE countries characterized by comparable historic and economic background but now they seem to reach diversified stages of development. The objective of the study is to identify the level of inclusive growth among the CEE countries, taking into account indicators assigned to its seven pillars. The thesis is that the CEE countries represent socio and economic heterogeneity as well as different levels of sustainable development. The research methods involved the application of the principal components analysis and the multivariate analysis. For literature review, the bibliometric analysis was conducted with the visualization prepared by the VOSviewer software. The main findings suggest that Estonia, Slovenia and the Czech Republic seem to be the ones with the highest inclusive growth. On the other hand, Bulgaria and Romania represent the lowest level of inclusive growth indicators.

The situation on the labour market in rural areas in the European Union is very diverse. There is visible disparity between the countries of Western Europe and Central and Eastern Europe previously undergoing transformation processes. This condition is mainly determined by demographic factors shaping the structure of the labour supply in rural areas. There are also important economic conditionings, creating the demand for labour, which can include, for example, labour productivity in agriculture, and employment opportunities outside agriculture. Not without significance there are also regional conditionings specifying particular areas, for example, their tourist attractiveness, or access of rural population to specific services and resources. / Synopsis. Sytuacja na rynku pracy na terenach wiejskich w krajach Unii Europejskiej jest bardzo zróżnicowana. Wyraźnie wyłania się dysproporcja pomiędzy krajami Europy Zachodniej i Środkowo-Wschodniej przechodzącymi uprzednio procesy transformacyjne. Stan ten determinowany jest głównie uwarunkowaniami demograficznymi kształtującymi strukturę podaży pracy na terenach wiejskich. Istotne są także czynniki ekonomiczne kreujące popyt na pracę, do których można na przykład zaliczyć wydajność pracy w rolnictwie, czy możliwości zatrudnienia poza rolnictwem. Nie bez znaczenia są także uwarunkowania regionalne poszczególnych obszarów określające, na przykład, ich atrakcyjność turystyczną, czy dostęp ludności wiejskiej do określonych usług i zasobów.

Summary Nowadays changes in the field of conditionings of European labour market policy as ageing society and crisis of welfare state, impose new objectives for the process of cohesion creation. The European Union countries, representing different labour market policy models (Scandinavian, corporate, liberal), have implemented labour market reforms allowing for effective usage of labour resources. The author in the article presents the assumptions of labour market policy models and indicates the main directions of its transformation in the current social and economic conditionings. That transformation mainly regards to concentration on active labour market policies and increasing its efficiency. The analysis was based on the example of three countries - Denmark, Germany and the United Kingdom. They represent three different labour market models and are characterized by the activity in the field of carried out reforms of labour market (mainly active labour market policy). Those countries, thanks to the implemented changes, improved the employability of labour force and (in spite of the economic crisis from 2008) maintained stable situation on the labour market.

Streszczenie Dunski model flexicurity, na ktory sklada sie: elastyczny rynek pracy, aktywna polityka rynku pracy i hojne panstwo opiekuncze, stanowi obecnie wzorzec do naśladowania przez wiele krajow europejskich. Ponadto, model ten odgrywa istotną role w ksztaltowaniu Europejskiej Strategii Zatrudnienia. Jednak, aby osiągnąc tak korzystne rezultaty z wdrazania polityki flexicurity, jak w Danii, nieodzowne jest wspolwystepowanie wszystkich jej skladowych, ktore z jednej strony zapewniają elastycznośc form pracy, natomiast z drugiej bezpieczenstwo socjalne dla osob z nich korzystających. Celem publikacji jest przedstawienie, w jakim stopniu realizuje sie polityke flexicurity w krajach Unii Europejskiej, w tym w Polsce, a takze, jakie są problemy związane z jej wdrazaniem. Slowa kluczowe: model flexicurity, elastyczne formy pracy, Europejska Strategia Zatrudnienia APPLICATION OF FLEXICURITY MODEL IN EUROPEAN UNION EMPLOYMENT STRATEGY Summary The Danish flexicurity model, which comprises: a flexible labour market, active labour market policy, and a generous welfare state, seems to be nowadays the pattern to follow for many European countries. Moreover, this model plays an important role in the creation of the European Employment Strategy. However, in order to achieve such success in the implementation of flexicurity policy as Denmark has, it is essential that all of its constituent elements are present, so as to ensure flexible forms of labour, on the one hand, and security for those who use flexible contracts, on the other hand. The purpose of this paper is to present the scope in which flexicurity policy is applied in the European Union countries, with special attention to Poland, and to diagnose the problems of its implementation.

In an era of aging of the European Union population, it is crucial to take care of human resources in various spheres of their life. The potential of young people is particularly important, as their economic activity creates the basis of maintaining the European welfare state model. However, the labour market situation of young people is difficult. Moreover, the phenomena, which have recently attracted increasing attention, are remaining for young people without employment, education or training (NEET). The occurrence of NEET's resources is harmful at micro level - due to pauperization of European households as well as for the whole economy due to insufficient usage of human resources. The paper aim is to compare how the situation of young people differs in the European Union labour markets.The paper was based on both the desk-research of literature as well as the analysis of selected economic indicators of young people (aged 15-29 years). The indicator analysis was made through the usage of cluster analysis (Ward's method and k-means method). The data was gathered from the databases of Eurostat. The selected indicators determine the labour market situation of young people in the EU countries and they are derived from two years – 2006 and 2014.Ward's and k-means methods allowed for dividing the EU countries into three groups. It occurred that the groups in 2006 have a completely different composition of countries than in 2014, which was mainly determined by crisis influences on the labour markets as well as directions of conducted reforms. Additionally, the k-means method allowed for comparison of selected groups on the basis of chosen variables and determination of countries with the best and the worst situation of young people.

Despite the economic transformations that have occurred since 1989, Poland is still characterised by a low level of urbanisation with rural areas still covering more than 90% of the land surface with a rural population of over 39% of all residents (Central Statistical Office 2013: 37, 120). A typical Polish village still remains marginalised in comparison with urban areas not only with regard to socio-economic living conditions, including access to certain goods and services, but also with regard to the labour market situation. Regional differences in supply of and demand for labour do not solely depend on the macroeconomic situation, but are also affected by the demographic composition, developments in information and communication technology and transport and educational infrastructure. The labour market situation for women living in rural Poland is characterised by a particularly difficult situation due on the one hand to their less direct involvement in farm management and, on the other hand, fewer job vacancies for women outside of agriculture. Taking into account the outflow of the younger female workforce in rural areas it seems crucial to establish alternative professional employment opportunities for women which reflect the socio-economic conditions of the Polish village. Self-employment is one possible option in this context.

Increasing the employment among young people is one of the main objectives of the European Union labour market policy. On the one hand, labour market indicators of youths are worse than the ones for the population as a whole. Moreover, the EU countries face NEETs phenomena when young people are not in education, employment and training. Simultaneously, the strong aging process in Europe and demographic changes determine the need for a particular focus on young people who are an important part of future labour force. It is crucial to equip young people with the skills and competencies tailored to the needs of employers, which also would be consistent with the attitudes and expectations of young people. That is why the authors of the paper decided to take into consideration the work and education attitudes of students in two European countries - Poland and Lithuania. These neighbouring EU member states went through comparable historical and political conditions, which influenced their economic situations also in the area of labour market. However, those countries followed different educational reforms. Lithuania implemented basic dual learning and Poland still represents more theoretical orientation in tertiary education. The research aim of the paper is to identify the differences in education and future work attitudes of Polish and Lithuanian students. Those differences were diagnosed taking into account: an assessment of own skills for a 'dream' job, perceptions of the impact of environmental factors on a future career, as well as a diagnosis of motivators to work.The chosen research methods were both secondary data analysis as well as realisation of the primary quantitative research among Polish and Lithuanian students. The survey was conducted among 500 students - roughly in half from each country. The comparison showed large similarities in the factors affecting the motivation of students to work as well as some differences in the perception of the impact of the environment on the future career. The biggest differences among students from two countries were identified in the evaluation of skills needed to find employment.