Poland plans to curb access to its job market for citizens of EU countries that plan labour restrictions against Poles after it joins the EU on May 1, the Rzeczpospolitadaily reported today.
Poland, the largest of the 10 EU newcomers with about 40 million people, will grant free access to its labour market only to Irish and British nationals, as they plan no restrictions for Poles.
But it will use its right to impose equivalent employment curbs on citizens of other EU countries that apply them to Poles, Rzeczpospolitasaid, citing a draft government decree.
The newspapers said the list of countries whose citizens will not have free access to the Polish market includes the remaining 13 EU states and three members of the European Economic Area - Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
The EU's current 15 members plan a variety of measures to prevent what they fear may be a large inflow of cheap labour from new member states.
Austria and Germany will keep strict curbs in place for up to seven years, while most other countries plan to maintain restrictions for two years.
Another newcomer, Hungary, has also threatened a tit-for-tat response if its citizens are barred from EU jobs markets.