Primework Group
Construction workers from Asia

Construction workers from Asia and Africa
Bricklayers, steel fixers, carpenters, machine operators.

We recruit bricklayers, steel fixers, formwork carpenters, welders, machine operators and site labourers for general contractors and construction companies across Poland. We run the full path: trade-tested selection, work legalisation, topping up qualifications, accommodation near the site and onboarding within the crew.

  • Structural, installation and general site roles
  • Practical trade test before the candidate departs
  • Type A permits, visas, housing and transport to the site
  • Direct recruitment, temporary work or crew outsourcing
Service at a glance
Scale
from 5 to 300+ people
Lead time
3–6 months
Licences
Welding · UDT · height
Models
Direct · TWA · outsourcing
Guarantee
Worker replacement
One coordinator through the whole process
01Context

Polish construction now recruits beyond Europe

Construction has not closed its staffing gap from the domestic and eastern markets for years, while infrastructure and housing investment grows faster than the number of tradespeople. Asian and African markets are no longer an emergency option – for many contractors they are planned, repeatable intakes.

5–300+

construction workers within a single contract

3–6 mo.

from contract to the crew entering the site

Trade test

bricklaying, steel fixing or welding before departure

8 markets

Philippines, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Morocco

02Diagnosis

Challenges contractors bring to us

No tradespeople on the domestic market

Bricklayers, steel fixers and formwork carpenters are shortage occupations. Contractors lose tenders not on price but on the inability to guarantee crews on time.

Contractual penalties for delay

The construction schedule will not wait for recruitment. Overseas sourcing has to start months before site entry, not after the first slippage.

Turnover between sites

Crews switch contractors mid-season over a few złoty. A group brought in for a contract stays longer because the agreement is planned in years, not months.

Inspection risk at the gate

Investors, the labour inspectorate and the border guard check documents on site. Gaps in legalisation can stop a work front mid-week.

03Roles

Who we recruit for construction

Most projects concern the shell stage, but we staff installations, finishing and site support in parallel. Regulated trades follow a separate, slower selection path.

Bricklayers and plasterers

Load-bearing and partition walls, blocks, brick, silicate, machine and hand plastering, shell-stage finishing.

Steel fixers and concreters

Preparing and installing reinforcement, mesh and stirrups, pumps and vibrators, slab and foundation works.

Formwork carpenters

Wall and slab formwork systems, shuttering, timber structures and roof trusses.

Welders and steel erectors

MAG, TIG and stick welding, steel structures, halls, gantries and pipelines – certified or topped up in Poland.

Construction machine operators

Excavators, loaders, backhoes, rollers and mobile platforms – with UDT licences or obtaining them after arrival.

Plumbers and site electricians

Water, sewage, heating and gas installations, cabling, switchgear and installations on buildings under construction.

Paviours and scaffolders

Block paving, kerbs, site landscaping plus scaffolding assembly and dismantling under a certified foreman.

General labourers

Site preparation, material handling, crew support, keeping work fronts clear and demolition works.

04Qualifications

Licences, medicals and safety on site

On a building site clearance to work is decided by documents and real skill, not by a declaration in a CV. That is why trade verification happens before departure and missing licences are added in parallel with legalisation.

Trade and experience verification

We check references from previous sites, trade records and completed projects – especially experience from Middle Eastern and East Asian markets, where standards are close to European ones.

Practical test in the candidate's country

A section of wall, a reinforcement cage, a welded joint or a formwork element built against the clock, recorded on video and scored against your quality standards.

Welding certification

Existing certificates are verified and missing methods are added through an exam at a Polish welding centre before clearance for load-bearing structures.

UDT machine licences

Operators are sent to a course and UDT exam in Poland; until the licence is issued they work in non-regulated roles.

Medicals and work at height

Medical checks, including height clearance, are arranged before work starts. Without them no worker steps onto scaffolding or a slab.

Safety training and workstation instruction

Initial training, instruction for the specific role and site movement rules – delivered in a language the worker understands.

The scope of licences is agreed on the role card – the path looks different for a steel fixer than for a structural welder or an excavator operator.

05Cooperation

Three cooperation models for contractors

The model depends on how much HR responsibility you want to keep in-house. They can be combined – a core crew employed directly and seasonal peaks covered by temporary work.

Direct recruitment

The worker is employed directly by you. We handle selection, legalisation, qualifications, arrival and the first weeks on site.

One-off recruitment

Temporary work

Employment on our side, flexible staffing of work fronts during the construction peak, billed by hours.

Temporary Work Agency

Crew outsourcing

We take over a defined scope – reinforcement, formwork or masonry – together with a foreman and responsibility for the result.

Outsourcing
06Quality

Selection built around site reality

A construction candidate has to meet criteria invisible in a CV: work pace, outdoor conditions and changing weather, safety discipline and working within a crew. The filter is agreed before the project starts and applied identically in every country.

Our recruitment filter

  • Documented experience in the trade, not general labouring only
  • Practical test on the target role, recorded on video
  • Physical fitness and medical clearance, including work at height
  • Communicative English and willingness to learn Polish trade vocabulary
  • Acceptance of shift work, outdoor conditions and changing weather
  • Readiness to relocate between sites within the contract

What we agree on your side

  • Role card: scope of work, quality standards and pace
  • Required licences: welding, UDT, work at height
  • Contract schedule and a realistic work front entry date
  • Accommodation standard and distance from the site
  • Who leads the crew and delivers workstation instruction
  • Scope of video interviews between your site manager and candidates
07Formalities

Legalisation and employment compliance

Documents are the longest part of the schedule, so we handle them in parallel for the whole group rather than candidate by candidate. We work under a KRAZ certificate and contracts compliant with Polish labour law.

Type A work permit

The application is filed for a specific construction role, together with the labour market test where required and with the site location taken into account.

National visa and entry

We compile visa documents, book appointments at consulates and coordinate the group's flights and airport pickup.

Residence card and legal stay

After arrival we run the temporary residence and work permit application, registration of address and notifications to the authorities.

Documentation ready for site inspection

Worker file: permits, medicals, safety training, UDT and welding certificates – ready for the investor, the labour inspectorate and the border guard.

Details are described in our residence and work legalisation and type A work permit services.

08Onboarding

The first days on site

Whether a crew stays is decided in the first month. That is why onboarding is part of the project, not an add-on after arrival.

Day 0 – arrival and housing

Airport pickup, transport to accommodation near the site, SIM cards, first shopping and a starter briefing in the worker's language.

Week 1 – documents and safety

Medicals, initial safety training, workstation instruction, workwear and personal protective equipment, site passes.

Weeks 2–3 – working in the crew

Entering the work front under a foreman, matching pace and quality standards, ongoing correction and interpreter support.

Months 2–3 – stabilisation

Report for the contractor: output, quality, absence and safety events. A coordinator supports the workers with administrative and everyday matters.

09Procedure

How a project for a construction company runs

01 · Contract and work front analysis

We define the scope, construction schedule, required trades and licences, and a realistic site entry date.

02 · Profile and batch schedule

A role card with quality standards and a batch plan are created. Deadlines are counted backwards from the day people must be on site.

03 · Sourcing and trade tests

Parallel channels in two or three countries, one selection filter, trade tests and video interviews with your site manager.

04 · Work legalisation

Type A permits, visa applications and full documentation handled in parallel for the whole group.

05 · Arrival and back office

Tickets, airport pickup, accommodation near the site, transport to the gate and protective equipment.

06 · Onboarding and care

Safety training, work in a crew with a mentor, a coordinator for the group, staffing reports and a replacement guarantee.

10Markets

Where we source construction workers

The country is matched to the trade, language requirements, budget and deadline. On larger contracts we source in two or three countries at the same time.

11Compliance

Risks we remove at the start

Construction projects fail for a handful of repeatable reasons. Each of them is addressed before the recruitment campaign is launched.

Worker without the required licence

UDT courses, welding exams and height medicals are booked before departure. Regulated work starts only once the document is issued.

Safety incidents in the first weeks

Workstation instruction in the worker's language, bilingual signage and procedures, and working in a crew with a mentor reduce the risk at the start.

Expired worker documents

A register of permit, residence card and medical deadlines set well in advance, so renewals start before a document lapses and before the investor blocks site access.

Disappointment with conditions after arrival

Rates, the work system, housing standard and overtime rules are presented before departure – this is the main reason for early departures from a site.

12FAQ

Frequently asked questions about construction workers

Which construction trades can you recruit?

Bricklayers, steel fixers, formwork carpenters, welders, structural steel erectors, heavy machine operators, plumbers, electricians, paviours, scaffolders, plasterers and general site labourers.

How long does it take from contract to the crew entering the site?

Realistically 3–6 months. Selection and trade tests take 2–4 weeks, the work permit and visa 3–4 months, and arrival with safety training and onboarding another 2–3 weeks. We run the stages in parallel for the whole group.

Are qualifications gained in Asia or Africa recognised in Poland?

Most construction trades require no formal recognition – experience and a practical test decide. Regulated qualifications such as welding certificates, UDT machine licences or electrical SEP entitlements are topped up with training and exams in Poland.

How do you verify a bricklayer's or steel fixer's skills?

Beyond references and trade records we run a practical test in the candidate's country: a section of wall, a reinforcement cage or a formwork element, recorded on video and scored against your quality standards.

Who handles health and safety training on site?

Initial safety training, workstation instruction and medical checks are arranged before the worker is cleared for work. Materials and instructions are delivered in the worker's language, and larger groups get a coordinator who translates on site.

Can the workers handle work at height?

Yes, although work at height requires separate medical clearance and training. Candidates declaring such work are sent for height medicals before departure, and scaffolding is erected only by certified personnel.

What language does the crew use with the site manager?

Communicative English plus basic Polish trade vocabulary is the standard. From ten workers upwards we provide a foreman or coordinator speaking the workers' language, and drawings, instructions and procedures are prepared bilingually.

Do you arrange accommodation near the site?

Yes. We can take over the full back office: compliant accommodation, transport to the site, airport pickup and relocation between contracts – or invoice recruitment and legalisation only.

What if a worker does not perform on site?

A replacement guarantee applies for the period written into the contract. More often we move the person to another position within the crew and send a new candidate for the demanding role.

Do you cover seasonal peaks and fixed-term contracts?

Yes. For seasonal work and hard deadlines we usually use temporary work or crew outsourcing – billing follows hours or scope, and employment and HR sit on our side.

Can we start with a smaller crew?

Yes, and we usually recommend it. A first batch of 5–10 workers lets you test accommodation, communication with the site manager and work pace before the full volume is launched.

Is hiring foreign workers on a construction site legally safe?

Yes, provided the documents are complete and current. We operate under a KRAZ certificate, keep a document register for every worker and track renewal deadlines so an inspection by the labour inspectorate, border guard or the investor at the gate passes without findings.

Construction

We will complete the crews for your contract.

We reply within 1 business day with a recommended sourcing market, a batch schedule and a full cost-per-worker calculation – with no obligation.