During the past two years, Poland has recorded its best economic performance since the late 1990s, with growth exceeding 6%. This was also the second-best performance among OECD countries, allowing for a significant narrowing of the income gaps vis-à-vis the average EU and OECD levels. Since Poland joined the European Union in 2004, GDP per capita has moved from 44 to 48% of the pre-2004 enlargement EU average. Furthermore, after nearly a decade of relative stagnation, employment has finally begun to contribute markedly to gains in living standards, rising by some 3% per year. Meanwhile, labour supply has shrunk, despite a still expanding working-age population. This further decline in labour force participation rates, to especially low levels for older workers and the least skilled, is of great concern. The result has been a spectacular decline in the unemployment rate, from nearly 18% in 2005 to 8½ per cent in the fourth quarter of 2007. At the same time, productivity gains have slowed from the growth rates recorded in the early 2000s.