One of the biggest topics for 2026 are planned changes in the competences of the National Labor Inspectorate. Most IT recruitment is based on B2B cooperation. This is largely due to the candidates' preferences.
Paulina Król, Chief People and Operations Officer at No Fluff Jobs, admits that companies do not know what to expect. — B2B employers are in a state of panicbecause it is not known how the National Labor Inspectorate will approach inspections, he explains.
In 2024, as many as 71 percent IT job offers were B2B. The trend continues in 2025. It is no wonder that possible changes arouse emotions – they may force some companies to change their entire operating model.
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Read also: Who will gain the upper hand in 2026? The labor market defies simple forecasts
Salaries in 2026. No more dynamic pay raises
The approach to remuneration is also changing. Over the years, the IT market has become accustomed to regular price increases. Today, salaries are still among the highest on the market, but their dynamics have clearly decreased.
— Lower range increased by 2-4%, but the upper ones are stagnant – says Paulina Król.
At the same time, as the Randstad Labor Market Monitor shows, up to 53 percent employees from the telecommunications and IT sectors still counts on raises in 2026.
AI is changing the IT industry. Experience counts in the labor market
Artificial intelligence is entering businesses faster than many expected. It changes the everyday work of programmers and what employers expect from candidates.
What roles are most needed today? According to Paulina Król, the greatest demand is for specialists who already have several years of experience. — Cybersecurity, Big Data, Data Science and people who can build AI tools are always at the top – he emphasizes.
No Fluff Jobs data shows that job advertisements most often include skills such as: SQL, Python, Java, Git, JavaScript. Knowledge of English is still an obvious requirement.
Read also: Digital transformation barometer 2025–2026. Polcom report: cloud and AI are changing Polish business
New key competencies on the IT market
Knowledge of artificial intelligence has become a key competence in many roles, but the following are also becoming more and more important:
- critical thinking,
- ability to learn quickly,
- communication and teamworkespecially in distributed teams.
Specializations such as cybersecurity require different competencies than IT systems administration, because they combine knowledge in the field of risk management, audit, law, psychology of user behavior and crisis communication.
IT juniors have the hardest time on the job market
In 2026, the most difficult situation will be faced by people just entering the industry. Companies are more willing to employ those who will get involved in the project and “deliver” the result immediately.
— Juniors are having a really hard time today. The simplest tasks are taken over by AI, companies prefer someone more experienced, says Paulina Król. Statistics confirm this: the share of junior offers has decreased from 8 percent in 2023 to 5.3 percent in 2025 This is not much for a market where thousands of people complete programming courses every year, he adds.
Randstad data shows that as many as 56 percent young workers (18-24 years) believes that companies' expectations are too high. Simultaneously 67 percent people aged 18–29 declares that they are ready to change industries if necessary.
Recruiters' challenges. Fake CVs and AI-generated scams
It's also harder for recruiters. Paulina Król points out that more and more often there are CVs that do not fully correspond to reality. “We see two types of 'fake CVs': those where the candidate enhances their skills using AI, and those where someone impersonates another person,” he says.
The NFJ report shows the scale of the problem: 73 percent candidates admitted that they had overestimated their competences, and 36 percent recruiters suspects the use of AI in the recruitment process. This forces companies to introduce additional verification steps.
Despite all these challenges, the IT industry still stands out from the rest of the economy. According to the Randstad report only seven percent IT employees declares great fear of losing his job. Internal turnover is higher than changing employers, which means that companies prefer to move people between teams rather than lose them.
Interestingly, in recruitment today, formal education is required least importance among all criteria. What matters is experience, practical skills and how the candidate copes with others. The industry is maturing and moving away from diplomas in favor of actual competences.
Compared to the previous year, the IT sector in Poland remains stable, but much more demanding than a few years ago. People with experience and specialization do well. Those who are just trying to enter the industry – and companies that have to find their way in new legal and technological conditions – have a more difficult time.
