Investment attractiveness of Polish voivodeship in the context of labour resources – dynamic approach

The purpose of the article is to identify the potential investment attractiveness of Poland's voivodeships in the context of the labour resources, and identifying changes over time.Design/methodology/approach: The measurement of the potential investment attractiveness of Poland's voivodeships was made on the basis of secondary data derived from the Central Statistical Office.The identification of investment attractiveness in the context of the labour resources was made on the basis of the synthetic index constructed from five standardized variables.Thus, three classes of voivodeships (A, B, C) were distinguished.Findings: At the beginning of analysis -in 2014 -the highest level of potential investment attractiveness in the labour resources (class A) had six voivodeships: Warmisko-Mazurskie, witokrzyskie, Lubuskie, Dolnolskie, Kujawsko-Pomorskie and Zachodniopomorskie.In 2023 this included only four units: witokrzyskie, Podkarpackie, Opolskie and Warmisko-Mazurskie.Investment attractiveness, measured by individual variables within the labour resources pillar, varies significantly in Polish voivodeships.The voivodeships with the lowest labour costs, i.e. the most attractive for efficiency-seeking investors, were Warmisko-Mazurskie, Podkarpackie, witokrzyskie i Kujawsko-Pomorskie.The highest value of labour productivity was observed in Mazowieckie and Dolnolskie.Particularly important in the context of investment attractiveness is the availability of labour resources, which can be measured by the unemployment rate.The most attractive in this variable were: Warmisko-Mazurskie and Kujawsko-Pomorskie.The labour market is especially in demand for people with vocational and technical skills.In this area, the most attractive voivodeships were: Opolskie, Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Wielkopolskie, and Warmisko-Mazurskie Voivodeship.An important indicator of the quality of labour resources is the percentage of graduates in the fields of biological and technical sciences.Among the regions with the highest values of this indicator were Dolnolskie, witokrzyskie and Maopolskie.Research limitations/implications: Due to the variability over time of the determinants of business location choice, studies to identify them should be conducted successively.It should also be noted that due to the changes of assessments of investment attractiveness determined by the specifics of businesses, it is reasonable to take into account its types in future studies.A serious problem is the limitations in access to data, as well as the growing reluctance of entrepreneurs to participate in surveys. Practical implications:The results of the study have practical applications in decision-making processes regarding the choice of business location.They can also be used by institutions working for the socio-economic development of regions to encourage investors to choose their areas as places to locate capital.Originality/value: Although the topic of investment attractiveness has been addressed frequently in the available literature, there are no studies devoted specifically to the context of labour resources in Poland.