ABSTRACT
The aim of the article is to present the role of economic activity zones in the development of local urban centres and their surroundings. The main area of research was the area of the town and commune of Wieliczka, with particular emphasis on the Wieliczka Economic Activity Zone (WEAZ). As part of the analysis, attention was focused primarily on the impact of enterprises on the labour market and the income of the commune. Based on the existing literature studies, the scale of multiplier effects resulting from the development of enterprises in WEAZ was also estimated. The presentation of the impact of companies located in the Wieliczka Economic Activity Zone on the socio-economic development of the commune area made it possible to determine the scale of benefits resulting from investing public funds in the creation of this type of investment zones. Analysing the role of WEAZ in the development of the local economy, the authors identified the relationship between the inflow of investments and a permanent increase in demand on the local labour market. This also concerned the resilience of newly created jobs in the context of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.